RUTH  FIELDING 


AT 


SNOW  CAMP 


ALICE  B-  EMERSON 


UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


10003058110 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  North  Carolina  at  Chapel  Hill 


http://www.archive.org/details/ruthfieldingatsnemer 


THE  SHARP  EXPLOSION  AND  THE  SHRIEK  OF  THE  PANTHER 
SEEMED  SIMULTANEOUS. 


Ruth  Fielding  at  Snow  Camp 


Page  123 


Ruth    Fielding 
at  Snow  Camp 

OR 

LOST  IN  THE  BACKWOODS 


BY 

ALICE  B.  EMERSON 

Author  of  "Ruth  Fielding  of  The  Red  Mill,*' 
"Ruth  Fielding  at  Lighthouse,  Point"  etc. 


ILLUSTRATED 


NEW   YORK 

CUPPLES  &  LEON  COMPANY 

PUBLISHERS 


looks  for  (£trla 

By  ALICE   B.    EMERSON 

RUTH    FIELDING    SERIES 

i2mo.     Cloth.     Illustrated. 

RUTH  FIELDING  OF  THE  RED  MILL 
Or,  Jasper  Parloe's  Secret. 

RUTH  FIELDING  AT  BRIARWOOD  HALL 
Or,  Solving  the  Campus  Mystery. 

RUTH  FIELDING  AT  SNOW  CAMP 
Or,  Lost  in  the  Backwoods. 

RUTH  FIELDING  AT  LIGHTHOUSE  POINT 
Or,  Nita,  the  Girl  Castaway. 

RUTH  FIELDING  AT  SILVER  RANCH 
Or,  Schoolgirls  Among  the  Cowboys. 

Cupples  &  Leon  Co.,  Publishers,  New  York. 

mm 

Copyright,  1913,  by 
Cupples  &  Leon  Company 


Ruth  Fieeding  at  Snow  Camp 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  A  Lively  Time       ......       i 


II.  A  Surprising  Appearance  . 
III.  The  Newspaper  Clipping  . 
iy.  The    Mysterious    Behavior    of 

Fred    Hatfield       .      .      . 
V.  Off  for  the  Backwoods 
VI.  On  the  Train       .      . 
VII.  A  Runaway  in  Good  Earnest 
VIII.  First  at  Snow  Camp  . 
IX.  "Long  Jerry"  Todd 
X.  Bears — and  Other  Things  . 
XI.  The  Frost  Games       .     .     :.. 
XII.  Peril — and  a  Taffy  Pull    . 

XIII.  Shells  and  Kernels       .     ,. 

XIV.  A  Telephone  Chase 
XV.  The  Battle  in  the  Snow     . 

XVI.  An  Appearance  and   a   Disap 

PEARANCE 

XVII.  Long  Jerry's  Story    . 
XVIII.  "The  Amazon  March"       . 
XIX.  Besieged  by  the  Storm  King 
XX.  The  Snow  Shroud     . 


8 
17 

25 
32 

37 

48 

55 

67 

76 

84 

94 

102 

109 

116 

122 

132 

138 
146 

155 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

XXL 

XXII. 

XXIII. 

XXIV. 

XXV. 


Adrift  in  the  Storm 
The  Hideout  .     . 
A  Double  Captivity 
The  Search     . 
Certain  Explanations 


PAGE 

165 
171 

180 
188 
197 


RUTH  FIELDING 
AT  SNOW  CAMP 


CHAPTER   I 

A   LIVELY  TIME 

11 1  don't  think  we'd  better  go  home  that  way, 
Helen." 

"  Why  not?  Mr.  Bassett  won't  care — and  it'tf 
the  nearest  way  to  the  road." 

"  But  he's  got  a  sign  up — and  his  cattle  run 
in  this  pasture,"  said  Ruth  Fielding,  who,  with 
her  chum,  Helen  Cameron,  and  Helen's  twin 
brother,  Tom,  had  been  skating  on  the  Lumano 
River,  where  the  ice  was  smooth  below  the  mouth 
of  the  creek  which  emptied  into  the  larger  stream 
near  the  Red  Mill. 

"  Aw,  come  on,  Ruthie !  "  cried  Tom,  stamping 
his  feet  to  restore  circulation. 

The  ground  was  hard  and  the  ice  was  thick  on 
the  river;  but  the  early  snows  that  had  fallen 
were  gone.  It  was  the  day  after  Christmas,  and 
Helen  and  Ruth  had  been  at  home  from  school 
at  Briarwood  Hall  less  than  a  week.  Tom,  too, 
who  attended  the  Military  Academy  at  Seven 
Oaks,  was  home  for  the  winter  holidays.  It  was 
snapping  cold  weather,   but  the   sun   had   been 


2  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

bright  this  day  and  for  three  hours  or  more  the 
friends  had  enjoyed  themselves  on  the  ice. 

"  Surely  Hiram  Bassett  hasn't  turned  his  cows 
out  in  this  weather,"  laughed  Helen. 

"  But  maybe  he  has  turned  out  his  bull,"  said 
Ruth.  "  You  know  how  ugly  that  creature  is. 
And  there's  the  sign." 

"I  declare!  you  do  beat  Peter!"  ejaculated 
Tom,  shrugging  his  shoulders.  "  We  are  only 
going  to  cut  across  Bassett's  field — it  won't  take 
ten  minutes.  And  it  will  save  us  half  an  hour  in 
getting  to  the  mill.  We  can't  go  along  shore,  for 
the  ice  is  open  there  at  the  creek." 

"  All  right,"  agreed  Ruth  Fielding,  doubtfully. 
She  was  younger  than  the  twins  and  did  not  mean 
to  be  a  wet  blanket  on  their  fun  at  any  time; 
but  admiring  Helen  so  much,  she  often  gave  up 
her  own  inclinations,  or  was  won  by  the  elder  girl 
from  a  course  which  she  thought  wise.  There 
had  been  times  during  their  first  term  at  Briar- 
wood  Hall,  now  just  completed,  when  Ruth  had 
been  obliged  to  take  a  different  course  from  her 
chum.  This  occasion,  however,  seemed  of  little 
moment.  Hiram  Bassett  owned  a  huge  red  herd- 
leader  that  was  the  terror  of  the  countryside; 
but  it  was  a  fact,  as  Helen  said,  that  the  cattle 
were  not  likely  to  be  roaming  the  pasture  at  this 
time  of  year. 

"  Come  on !  "  said  Tom,  again.    "  The  car  was 


A   LIVELY  TIME  3 

to  go  down  to  the  Cheslow  station  for  father  and 
stop  at  the  mill  for  us  on  its  return.  We  don't 
want  to  keep  him  waiting." 

"  And  weVe  got  so  much  to  do  to-night, 
Ruthie!"  cried  Helen.  "  Have  you  got  your 
things  packed?" 

"Aunt  Alvirah  said  she  would  look  my  clothes 
over,"  said  Ruth,  in  reply.  "  I  don't  really  see  as 
I've  much  to  take,  Helen.  We  only  want  warm 
things  up  there  in  the  woods." 

"  And  plenty  of  'em,"  advised  Tom.  "  Bring 
your  skates.  We  may  get  a  chance  to  use  them 
if  the  snow  isn't  too  heavy.  But  up  there  in  the 
backwoods  the  snow  hasn't  melted,  you  can  bet, 
since  the  first  fall  in  November." 

"We'll  have  just  the  loveliest  time!  "  went  on 
Helen,  with  her  usual  enthusiasm.  "  Tom  and  I 
spent  a  week-end  at  Snow  Camp  when  Mr.  Par- 
rish  owned  it,  and  when  we  knew  he  was  going  to 
sell,  we  just  begged  papa  to  buy  it.  You  never 
saw  such  a  lovely  old  log  cabin " 

"  I  never  saw  a  log  cabin  at  all,"  responded 
Ruth,  laughing. 

They  had  climbed  the  steep  bank  now  and 
started  across  the  pasture  in  what  Tom  called  "  a 
catter-cornering  "  direction,  meaning  to  come  out 
upon  the  main  road  to  Osago  Lake  within  sight 
of  the  Red  Mill,  which  was  the  property  of  Mr. 
Jabez  Potter,  Ruth's  uncle. 


4  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

Ruth  Fielding,  after  her  parents  died,  had 
come  from  Darrowtown  to  live  with  her  mother's 
uncle  at  the  Red  Mill,  as  was  told  in  the  first  vol- 
ume of  this  series,  entitled  "  Ruth  Fielding  of  the 
Red  Mill;  Or,  Jasper  Parloe's  Secret;'  The  girl 
had  found  Uncle  Jabez  very  hard  to  get  along 
with  at  first,  for  he  was  a  good  deal  of  a  miser, 
and  his  finer  feelings  seemed  to  have  been  neg- 
lected during  a  long  life  of  hoarding  and  selfish- 
ness. 

But  through  a  happy  turn  of  circumstances 
Ruth  was  enabled  to  get  at  the  heart  of  her 
crotchety  uncle,  and  when  Ruth's  very  dear  friend, 
Helen  Cameron,  planned  to  go  away  to  school, 
Uncle  Jabez  was  won  over  to  the  idea  of  sending 
Ruth  with  her.  The  girls  were  now  home  for 
the  winter  holidays  after  spending  their  first  term 
at  Briarwood  Hall,  where  they  had  made  many 
friends  as  well  as  learning  a  good  many  practical 
and  necessary  things.  The  fun  and  work  of  this 
first  term  is  all  related  in  "  Ruth  Fielding  at 
Briarwood  Hall;  Or,  Solving  the  Campus  Mys- 
tery," which  is  the  second  volume  of  the  Ruth 
Fielding  Series. 

And  now  another  frolic  was  in  immediate  pros- 
pect. Mr.  Cameron,  who  was  a  very  wealthy  dry- 
goods  merchant,  had  purchased  a  winter  camp 
deep  in  the  wilderness,  up  toward  the  Canadian 
line,  and  Christmas  itself  now  being  over,  Helen 


A  LIVELY  TIME  5 

and  Tom  had  obtained  his  permission  to  take  a 
party  of  their  friends  with  them  to  the  lodge  in 
the  backwoods — Snow  Camp. 

It  was  really  Helen's  party.  Besides  Ruth,  she 
had  invited  Madge  Steele,  Jennie  Stone,  Belle 
Tingley,  and  Lluella  Fairfax  to  be  of  the  party. 
She  had  invited  one  other  girl  from  Briarwood, 
too;  but  Mary  Cox  had  refused  the  invitation. 
"  The  Fox,"  as  her  school-fellows  called  her,  had 
been  under  a  cloud  at  the  end  of  the  term,  and 
perhaps  she  might  have  felt  somewhat  abashed 
had  she  joined  the  party  of  her  school-fellows  at 
Snow  Camp. 

Tom  had  invited  his  chum  at  school,  who  was 
Madge  Steele's  brother  Bob,  and  another  boy 
named  Isadore  Phelps.  With  Mr.  Cameron  him- 
self and  Mrs.  Murchiston,  the  lady  who  had  been 
the  twins'  governess  when  they  were  small,  and 
several  servants,  the  party  were  to  take  train  at 
Cheslow  the  next  day  for  the  northern  wilderness. 

The  trio  of  friends,  as  they  hurried  across 
Hiram  Bassett's  pasture,  were  full  of  happy  an- 
ticipations regarding  the  proposed  trip,  and  they 
chatted  merrily  as  they  went  on.  Halfway  across 
the  field  they  passed  along  the  edge  of  a  bush- 
bordered  hollow.  Their  skating  caps — Tom's 
white,  Ruth's  blue,  and  Helen's  of  a  brilliant 
scarlet — bobbed  up  and  down  beside  the  hedge, 
and  anybody  upon  the  other  side,  in  the  hollow, 


6  RUTH   FIELDING  AT    SNOW   CAMP 

might  have  been  greatly  puzzled  to  identify  the 
bits  of  color. 

"  For  mercy's  sake!  what's  that?"  ejaculated 
Helen,  suddenly. 

The  others  fell  silent.  A  sudden  stamping 
upon  the  frozen  ground  arose  from  beyond  the 
bushes.     Then  came  a  reverberating  bellow. 

Tom  leaped  through  the  bushes  and  looked 
down  the  hill.  There  sounded  the  thundering  of 
pounding  hoofs,  and  the  boy  sprang  back  to  the 
side  of  his  sister  and  her  chum  with  a  cry. 

"  Run !  "  he  gasped.  "  The  bull  is  there— I 
declare  it  is !  He's  coming  right  up  the  hill  and 
will  head  us  off.  We've  got  to  go  back.  He  must 
have  seen  us  through  the  bushes." 

"  Oh,  dear  me!  dear  me!"  cried  his  sister. 
"  What  will  we  do " 

"  Run,  I  tell  you !  "  repeated  Tom,  seizing  her 
hand. 

Ruth  had  already  taken  her  other  hand.  With 
their  skates  rattling  over  their  shoulders,  the  trio 
started  back  acoss  the  field.  The  bull  parted  the 
bushes  and  came  thundering  out  upon  the  plain. 
He  swerved  to  follow  them  instantly.  There 
could  be  no  doubt  that  he  had  seen  them,  and 
the  bellow  he  repeated  showed  that  he  was  very 
much  enraged  and  considered  the  three  friends 
his  particular  enemies. 

Ruth  glanced  back  over  her  shoulder  and  saw 


A  LIVELY  TIME  7 

that  the  angry  beast  was  gaining  on  them  fast. 
It  was  indeed  surprising  how  fast  the  bull  could 
gallop — and  he  was  very  terrible  indeed  to  look 
upon. 

"  He  will  catch  us!  he  will  catch  us !  "  moaned 
Helen. 

"  You  girls  run  ahead,"  gasped  Tom,  letting  go 
of  his  sister's  hand.  "  Maybe  I  can  turn  him n 

"He'll  kill  you!"  cried  Helen. 

"Come  this  way!"  commanded  Ruth,  sud- 
denly turning  to  the  left,  toward  the  bank  of  the 
open  creek.  The  current  of  this  stream  was  so 
swift  that  it  had  not  yet  frozen — saving  along  the 
edges.  The  bank  was  very  steep.  A  few  trees 
of  good  size  grew  along  its  edge. 

"We  can't  cross  the  creek,  Ruthie!"  shrieked 
Helen.    "  He  will  get  us,  sure." 

"  But  we  can  get  below  the  bank — out  of 
sight!"  panted  her  chum.  "Come,  Tom!  that 
beast  will  kill  you  if  you  delay." 

"  It's  our  caps  he  sees,"  declared  Master  Tom. 
"  That  old  red  cap  of  Nell's  is  what  is  exciting 
him  so." 

In  a  flash  Ruth  Fielding  snatched  the  red  cap 
from  her  chum's  head  and  ran  on  with  it  toward 
the  bank  of  the  creek.  The  others  followed  her 
while  the  big  bull,  swerving  in  his  course,  came 
bellowing  on  behind. 


CHAPTER   II 

A    SURPRISING    APPEARANCE 

Helen  was  sobbing  and  crying  as  she  ran. 
Tom  kept  a  few  feet  behind  the  girls,  although 
what  h6e  could  have  done  to  defend  them,  had 
the  big  bull  overtaken  him,  it  would  be  hard  to 
say.  And  for  several  moments  it  looked  very 
much  as  though  Hiram  Bassett's  herd-leader  was 
going  to  reach  his  prey. 

The  thunder  of  his  hoofs  was  in  their  ears. 
They  did  not  speak  again  as  they  came  to  the 
steep  bank  down  to  the  open  creek.  There,  just 
before  them,  was  an  old  hollow  stump,  perhaps 
ten  feet  high,  with  the  opening  on  the  creek  side. 
All  three  of  them  knew  it  well. 

As  Helen  went  over  the  bank  and  disappeared 
on  one  side  of  the  stump,  Tom  darted  around  the 
other  side.  Ruth,  with  the  red  cap  in  her  hand, 
stumbled  over  a  root  and  fell  to  her  knees.  She 
was  right  beside  the  hollow  stump,  and  Helen's 
cap  caught  in  a  twig  and  was  snatched  from  her 
hand. 

As  Ruth  scrambled  aside  and  then  fairly  rolled 
8 


A   SURPRISING  APPEARANCE  9 

over  the  edge  of  the  bank  out  of  sight,  the  cap 
was  left  dangling  right  in  front  of  the  stump. 
The  bull  charged  it.  That  flashing  bit  of  color 
was  what  had  attracted  the  brute  from  the  start. 

As  the  three  friends  dived  over  the  bank — and 
their  haste  and  heedlessness  carried  them  pell- 
mell  to  the  bottom — there  sounded  a  yell  behind 
them  that  certainly  was  not  emitted  by  the  bull. 
Goodness  knows,  he  roared  loudly  enough!  But 
this  was  no  voice  of  a  bull  that  so  startled  the  two 
girls  and  Tom  Cameron — it  was  far  too  shrill. 

"There's  somebody  in  that  tree!  "  yelled  Tom. 

And  then  the  forefront  of  the  bull  collided  with 
the  rotten  old  stump.  Taurus  smashed  against 
it  with  the  force  of  a  pile-driver — three-quarters 
of  a  ton  of  solid  flesh  and  bone,  going  at  the  speed 
of  a  fast  train,  carries  some  weight.  It  seemed 
as  though  a  live  tree  could  scarcely  have  stood 
upright  against  that  charge,  let  alone  this  rotten 
stump. 

Crash ! 

The  rotten  roots  gave  way.  They  were  torn 
out  of  the  frozen  ground,  the  stump  toppled  over, 
and,  carrying  a  great  ball  of  earth  with  it,  plunged 
down  the  bank  of  the  creek. 

Tom  had  clutched  the  girls  by  their  hands 
again  and  the  three  were  running  along  the  nar- 
row shore  under  shelter  of  the  bank.  The  bull 
no  longer  saw  them.     Indeed,  the  shock  had 


IO  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

thrown  him  to  the  ground,  and  when  he  scram- 
bled up,  he  ran  off,  bellowing  and  tossing  his  head, 
in  an  entirely  different  direction. 

But  the  uprooted  stump  went  splash!  into  the 
icy  waters  of  the  creek,  and  as  it  plunged  beneath 
the  surface — all  but  its  roots — the  trio  of  fright- 
ened friends  heard  that  eyrie  cry  again. 

"  It's  from  the  hollow  trunk!    I  tell  you,  some 
body's  in  there!  "  declared  Tom. 

But  the  uprooted  stump  had  fallen  into  the 
water  with  the  opening  down.  If  there  really 
was  anybody  in  it,  the  way  in  which  the  stump 
had  fallen  served  to  hold  such  person  prisoner. 

Ruth  Fielding  was  as  quick  as  Tom  to  turn 
back  to  the  spot  where  the  old  stump  had  been 
submerged;  but  Helen  had  fallen  in  her  tracks, 
and  sat  there,  hugging  her  knees  and  rocking  her 
body  to  and  fro,  as  she  cried: 

"He'll  be  drowned!  Don't  you  see,  he  is 
drowned?    And  suppose  that  bull  comes  back?" 

"  That  bull  won't  get  us  down  here,  Nell,"  re- 
turned her  brother,  laying  hold  of  the  roots  of 
the  hollow  tree  and  trying  to  turn  it  over. 

But  although  he  and  Ruth  both  exerted  them- 
selves to  the  utmost,  they  could  barely  stir  the 
stump.  Suddenly  they  heard  a  struggle  going  on 
inside  the  hollow  shell;  as  well,  a  thumping  on 
the  thin  partition  of  wood  and  a  muffled  sound 
of  shouting. 


A   SURPRISING  APPEARANCE  n 

"He's  alive — the  water  hasn't  filled  the  hol- 
low," cried  Ruth.  "  Oh,  Tom!  we  must  do  some- 
thing." 

"  And  I'd  like  to  know  what?  "  demanded  that 
youth,  in  great  perturbation. 

The  stump  rested  on  the  shore,  but  was  half 
submerged  in  the  water  for  most  of  its  length. 
The  unfortunate  person  imprisoned  in  the  hollow 
part  of  the  tree-trunk  must  be  partly  submerged 
in  the  water,  too.  Had  the  farther  end  of  the 
stump  not  rested  on  a  rock,  it  would  have  plunged 
to  the  bottom  of  the  creek  and  the  victim  of  the 
accident  must  certainly  have  been  drowned. 

"Why  don't  he  crawl  out?  Why  don't  he 
crawl  out?  "  cried  Ruth,  anxiously. 

"  How's  he  going  to  do  it?"  sputtered  Tom. 

"  Can't  he  dive  down  into  the  water  through 
the  hole  in  the  tree  and  so  come  up  outside?  " 
demanded  the  girl  from  the  Red  Mill,  irritably. 
"I  never  saw  such  a  fellow!  " 

Whether  this  referred  to  Tom,  or  to  the  un- 
known, the  former  did  not  know.  But  he  recog- 
nized immediately  the  good  sense  in  Ruth's  sug- 
gestion. Tom  leaped  out  upon  the  log  and 
stamped  upon  it.     Helen  screamed: 

"  You'll  go  into  the  creek,  too,  Tom !  " 

"  No,  I  won't,"  he  replied. 

"Then  you'll  make  the  stump  fall  in  entirely 
and  the  man  will  be  drowned." 


12  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"  No,  I  won't  do  that,  either,"  muttered  Mas- 
ter Tom. 

He  stamped  upon  the  wooden  shell  again.  A 
faint  halloo  answered  him,  and  the  knocking  on 
the  inner  side  of  the  hollow  tree  was  repeated. 

"Come  out!  Come  out!"  shouted  Tom. 
"Dive  down  through  the  water  and  get  out. 
You'll  be   suffocated  there." 

But  at  first  the  prisoner  seemed  not  to  under- 
stand— or  else  was  afraid  to  make  the  attempt. 

"  Oh,  if  I  only  had  an  axe!  "  groaned  Master 
Tom. 

"  If  you  cut  into  that  tree  you  might  do  some 
damage,"  said  his  sister,  now  so  much  interested 
in  the  prisoner  that  she  got  up  and  came  near. 

Ruth  saw  Helen's  red  cap  high  up  on  the  bank 
and  she  scrambled  up  and  got  it,  stuffing  it  under 
her  coat  again. 

"  We'll  keep  that  out  of  sight,"  she  said. 

"If  it  hadn't  been  for  that  old  red  thing," 
growled  Tom,  "  the  bull  wouldn't  have  chased  us 
in  the  first  place." 

But  all  of  them  were  thinking  mainly  of  the 
person  in  the  hollow  of  the  old  stump.  How 
could  they  get  this  person  out?  " 

And  the  answer  to  that  question  was  not  so 
easily  found — as  Tom  had  observed.  They  could 
not  roll  the  stump  over;  they  had  no  means  of 
cutting  through  to  the  prisoner.     But,  suddenly. 


A  SURPRISING  APPEARANCE  13 

that  individual  settled  the  question  without  their 
help.  There  was  a  struggle  under  the  log,  a 
splashing  of  the  water,  and  then  a  figure  bobbed 
up  out  of  the  shallows. 

Ruth  screamed  and  seized  it  before  it  fell  back 
again.  It  was  a  boy — a  thin,  miserable-looking, 
dripping  youth,  no  older  than  Tom,  and  with 
wild,  burning  eyes  looking  out  of  his  wet  and 
pallid  face.  Had  it  not  been  for  Ruth  and  Tom 
he  must  have  fallen  back  into  the  stream  again, 
he  was  so  weak. 

They  dragged  him  ashore,  and  he  fell  down, 
shaking  and  chattering,  on  the  edge  of  the  creek. 
He  was  none  too  warmly  dressed  at  the  best;  the 
water  now  fast  congealed  upon  his  clothing.  His 
garments  would  soon  be  as  stiff  as  boards. 

"  We've  got  to  get  him  to  the  Mill,  girls,"  de- 
clared Tom.  "  Come!  get  up!  "  he  cried  to  the 
stranger.  "  You  must  get  warmed  and  have  dry 
clothing." 

"And  something  hot  to  drink,"  said  Ruth. 
"  Aunt  Alviry  will  make  him  something  that  will 
take  the  cold  out  of  his  bones." 

The  strange  boy  stared  at  them,  unable,  it 
seemed,  to  speak  a  word.  They  dragged  him 
upright  and  pushed  him  on  between  them.  The 
bull  had  run  towards  the  river  and  had  not  come 
back;  so  the  friends,  with  their  strange  find,  hur- 
ried on  to  the  public  road  and  crossed  the  bridge 


I4  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

at  the  creek,  turning  off  into  the  orchard  path  that 
led  up  to  the  Red  Mill. 

"  What's  your  name?"  demanded  Tom  of  the 
strange  boy. 

But  all  the  latter  could  do  was  to  chatter  and 
shake  his  head.  The  icy  water  had  bitten  into 
his  very  bones.  They  fairly  dragged  him  be- 
tween them  for  the  last  few  yards,  and  burst  into 
Aunt  Alvirah's  kitchen  in  a  manner  "  fit  to  throw 
one  into  a  conniption !  "  as  that  good  lady  de- 
clared. 

"Oh,  my  back,  and  oh,  my  bones!"  she 
groaned,  getting  up  quickly  from  her  rocking 
chair  by  the  window,  where  she  had  been  knit- 
ting. "For  the  good  land  o'  mercy!  what  is 
this?" 

All  three  of  the  friends  began  to  tell  her  to- 
gether. But  the  little  old  woman  with  the  bent 
back  and  rheumatic  limbs  understood  one  thing,* 
if  she  made  nothing  else  out  of  the  general  gab- 
ble. The  strange  boy  had  been  in  the  water,  and 
his  need  was  urgent. 

"  Bring  him  right  in  here,  Tommy,"  she  com- 
manded, hobbling  into  Mr.  Potter's  bedroom, 
which  was  the  nearest  to  the  kitchen,  and  thereby 
the  warmest.  "  I  don't  know  what  Jabez  will 
say,  but  that  child's  got  to  git  a-twixt  blankets 
right  away.  It's  a  mercy  if  he  ain't  got  his 
death." 


A  SURPRISING  APPEARANCE  15 

They  drew  off  the  stranger's  outer  clothing,  and 
then  Aunt  Alviry  left  Tom  to  help  him  further 
disrobe  and  roll  up  in  the  blankets  on  Mr.  Pot- 
ter's bed.  Meantime  the  old  woman  filled  a  stone 
water-bottle  with  boiling  water,  to  put  at  his  feet, 
and  made  a  great  bowl  of  "  composition "  for 
him  to  drink  down  as  soon  as  it  was  cool  enough 
for  him  to  swallow. 

Ruth  wrung  out  the  boy's  wet  garments  and 
hung  them  to  dry  around  the  stove,  where  they 
began  immediately  to  steam.  As  she  had  noticed 
before,  the  stranger's  clothing  was  well  worn. 
He  had  no  overcoat — only  a  thick  jacket.  All  his 
clothing  was  of  the  cheapest  quality. 

Suddenly  Helen  exclaimed:  " What's  that 
you've  dropped  out  of  his  vest,  Ruthie?  A 
wallet?" 

It  was  an  old  leather  note-case.  There  ap- 
peared to  be  little  in  it  when  Ruth  picked  it  up, 
for  it  was  very  flat.  Certainly  there  was  no  money 
in  it.  Nor  did  there  seem  to  be  anything  in  it 
that  would  identify  its  owner.  However,  as  Ruth 
carried  it  to  the  window  she  found  a  newspaper 
clipping  tucked  into  one  compartment,  and,  as  it 
was  damp,  too,  she  took  this  out,  unfolded  it, 
and  laid  it  carefully  on  the  window  sill  to  dry. 
But  when  she  looked  further,  she  saw  inside  the 
main  compartment  of  the  wallet  a  name  and  ad- 
dress stenciled,     It  was: 


l6  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

Jonas  Hatfield 
Scarboro,  N.  Y. 

"  Sec,  Helen,"  she  said  to  her  chum.  "  Maybe 
this  is  his  name — Jonas  Hatfield." 

"And  Scarboro,  New  York!  "  gasped  Helen, 
suddenly.     "  Why,  Ruthie !  " 

"What's  the  matter?"  returned  Ruth,  in  sur- 
prise. 

"  What  a  coincidence  I  " 

"  What  is  a  coincidence?  "  demanded  Ruth,  still 
greatly  amazed  by  her  chum's  excitement. 

"  Why  this  boy — if  this  is  his  wallet  and  that 
is  his  name  and  address — comes  from  right  about 
where  we  are  going  to-morrow.  Scarboro  is  the 
nearest  railroad  station  to  Snow  Camp.  What  do 
you  think  of  that?" 

Before  Ruth  could  reply,  the  sound  of  an  auto- 
mobile horn  was  heard  outside,  and  both  girls  ran 
to  the  door.  The  Cameron  automobile  was  just 
coming  down  the  hill  from  the  direction  of  Ches- 
low,  and  in  a  minute  it  stopped  before  the  door 
of  the  Potter  farmhouse. 


CHAPTER   III 

THE   NEWSPAPER  CLIPPING 

The  Red  Mill  was  a  grist  mill,  and  Mr.  Jabez 
Potter  made  wheat-flour,  buckwheat,  cornmeal,  or 
ground  any  grist  that  was  brought  to  him.  Stand- 
ing on  a  commanding  knoll  beside  the  Lumano 
River,  it  was  very  picturesquely  situated,  and  the 
rambling  old  farmhouse  connected  with  it  was  a 
very  homey-looking  place  indeed. 

The  automobile  had  stopped  at  the  roadside 
before  the  kitchen  door,  and  Mr.  Cameron 
alighted  and  started  immediately  up  the  straight 
path  to  the  porch.  He  was  a  round,  jolly,  red- 
faced  man,  who  was  forever  thinking  of  some 
surprise  with  which  to  please  his  boy  and  girl,  and 
seldom  refused  any  request  they  might  make  of 
him.  This  plan  of  taking  a  party  of  young  folk 
into  the  backwoods  for  a  couple  of  weeks  was 
entirely  to  amuse  Tom  and  Helen.  Personally, 
the  dry-goods  merchant  did  not  much  care  for 
such  an  outing. 

He  came  stamping  up  the  steps  and  burst  into 
the  kitchen  in  a  jolly  way,  and  Helen  ran  to  him 
with  a  kiss. 

17 


18  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"Hullo!  what's  all  this?"  he  demanded,  his 
black  eyes  taking  in  the  grove  of  airing  garments 
around  the  stove.  "  Tom  been  in  the  river?  No! 
Those  aren't  Tom's  duds,  I'll  be  switched  if  they 
are!" 

"  No,  no,"  cried  Helen.     "  It's  another  boy." 

And  here  Tom  himself  appeared  from  the  bed- 
room. 

"  I  thought  Tom  could  keep  out  of  the  river 
when  the  ice  was  four  inches  thick — eh,  son?" 
laughed  Mr.  Cameron. 

His  children  began  to  tell  him,  both  together, 
of  the  adventure  with  the  bull  and  the  mysteri- 
ous appearance  of  the  strange  Boy. 

"Aye,  aye!"  he  said.  "And  Ruth  Fielding 
was  in  it,  of  course — and  did  her  part  in  extri- 
cating you  all  from  the  mess,  too,  I'll  be  bound! 
Whatever  would  we  do  without  Ruth?"  and  he 
smiled  and  shook  hands  with  the  miller's  niece. 

"  I  guess  we  were  all  equally  scared.  But  it 
certainly  was  my  fault  that  the  old  bull  bunted 
the  hollow  stump  into  the  creek.  So  this  boy  can 
thank  me  for  getting  him  such  a  ducking," 
laughed    Ruth. 

"  And  who  is  he?  Where  does  he  come  from?" 

Ruth  showed  Mr.  Cameron  the  stencil  on  the 
inside  of  the  wallet. 

"Isn't  that  funny,  Father?"  cried  Helen. 
"  Right  where  we  are  going — Scarboro." 


A  NEWSPAPER   CUPPING  19 

14  If  the  wallet  is  his,"  muttered  Mr.  Cameron. 

"What  do  you  mean,  sir?"  questioned  Ruth, 
quickly.  "  Do  you  think  he  is  a  bad  boy — that 
he  has  taken  the  wallet " 

"  Now,  now !  "  exclaimed  Mr.  Cameron,  smil- 
ing at  her  again.  "  Don't  jump  at  conclusions, 
Mistress  Ruth  Fielding.  I  have  no  suspicion  re- 
garding the  lad How  is  the  patient,  Aunt 

Alviry?"  he  added,  quickly,  as  the  little  old 
woman  came  hobbling  out  of  the  bedroom  where 
the  strange  boy  lay. 

"  Oh,  my  back,  and  oh,  my  bones! "  said  Aunt 
Alviry,  under  her  breath.  But  she  welcomed  Mr. 
Cameron  warmly  enough,  too.  "  He's  getting  on 
fine,"  she  declared.  "  He'll  be  all  right  soon.  I 
reckon  he  won't  suffer  none  in  the  end  for  his 
wetting.  I'm  a-goin'  to  cook  him  a  mess  of  gruel, 
for  I  believe  he's  hungry." 

"Who  is  he,  Aunt  Alviry?"  asked  the  gentle- 
man. Aunt  Alvirah  Boggs  was  "  everybody's 
Aunt  Alviry,"  although  she  really  had  no  living 
kin,  and  Mr.  Jabez  Potter  had  brought  her  from 
the  almshouse  ten  years  or  more  before  to  act 
I  as  his  housekeeper. 

"  Dunno,"  said  Aunt  Alvirah,  shaking  her  head 
in  answer  to  Mr.  Cameron's  question.  "  Ain't 
the  first  idee.     You  kin  go  in  and  talk  to  him, 


sir." 


With  the  wallet  in  his  hand  and  the  three  young 


20  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

folk  at  his  heels,  both  their  interest  and  their 
curiosity  aroused,  Mr.  Cameron  went  into  the 
passage  and  so  came  to  the  open  door  of  the 
bedroom.  Mr.  Potter  slept  in  a  big,  four-post 
bedstead,  which  was  heaped  high  at  this  time  of 
year  with  an  enormous  feather  bed.  Boiled  like 
a  mummy  in  the  blankets,  and  laid  on  this  bed, 
the  feathers  had  plumped  up  about  the  vagabond 
boy  and  almost  buried  him.  But  his  eyes  were 
wide  open — pale  blue  eyes,  with  light  lashes  and 
eyebrows,  which  gave  his  thin,  white  countenance 
a  particularly  blank  expression. 

"  Heigho,  my  lad!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Cameron, 
in  his  jolly  way.  "  So  your  name  is  Jonas  Hat- 
field, of  Scarboro;  is  it?" 

"  No,  sir;  that  was  my  father's  name,  sir," 
returned  the  boy  in  bed,  weakly.  "  My  name  is 
Fred." 

And  then  a  brilliant  flush  suddenly  colored  his 
pale  face.  He  half  started  up  in  bed,  and  the 
pale  blue  eyes  flashed  with  an  entirely  different 
expression.  He  demanded,  in  a  hoarse,  unnat- 
ural voice: 

"  How'd'  you  find  me  out?  " 

Mr.  Cameron  shook  his  head  knowingly,  and 
laughed. 

"  That  was  a  bit  of  information  you  were  keep- 
ing to  yourself — eh?  Well,  why  did  you  carry 
your  father's  old  wallet  about  with  you,  if  you 


A  NEWSPAPER   CUPPING  21 

did  not  wish  to  be  identified?     Come,  son!  what 
harm  is  there  in  our  knowing  who  you  are?  " 

Fred  Hatfield  sank  back  in  the  feathers  and 
weakly  rolled  his  head  from  side  to  side.     The 
blood  receded  from  his  cheeks,  leaving  him  quite 
,  as  pale  as  before.    He  whispered: 

"  I  ran  away." 

"Yes.  That's  what  I  supposed,"  said  Mr. 
Cameron,  easily.    "What  for?" 

11 1— I  can't  tell  you." 

"What  did  you  do?" 

"  I  didn't  say  I  did  anything.  I  just  got  sick 
of  it  up  there,  and  came  away,"  the  boy  said, 
sullenly. 

"  Your  father  is  dead?  "  asked  the  gentleman, 
shrewdly. 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Got  a  mother?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"  Doesn't  she  need  you?  " 

"  No,  sir." 

"Why  not?" 

"  She's  got  Ez,  and  Peter,  and  'Lias  to  work 
the  farm.  They're  all  older'n  me.  Then  there's 
the  two  gals  and  Bob,  who  are  younger.  She 
don't  need  me,"  declared  Fred  Hatfield,  dog- 
gedly. 

"  I  don't  believe  a  mother  ever  had  so  many 
children  that  she  didn't  sorely  miss  the  one  who 


22  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

was    absent,"    declared   Mr.    Cameron,    quietly. 
"  Tell  me  how  you  came  away  down  here." 

Brokenly  the  boy  told  his  story — not  an  un- 
common one.  He  had  traveled  most  of  the  dis- 
tance afoot,  working  here  and  there  for  farmers 
and  storekeepers.  He  admitted  that  he  had  been 
some  weeks  on  the  road.  His  being  in  that  hol- 
low stump  in  Hiram  Bassett's  field  was  quite  by 
accident.  He  was  passing  through  the  field,  mak- 
ing for  the  main  road,  when  he  had  seen  Ruth, 
Helen,  and  Tom,  and  stepped  behind  the  tree  so 
as  not  to  be  observed. 

"  What  made  you  so  afraid  of  being  seen  by 
anyone?"  demanded  Mr.  Cameron,  at  this  point. 
"  Do  you  think  your  folks  are  trying  'to  find 
you?" 

"  I — I  don't  know,"  stammered  the  lad. 

This  was  about  all  his  questioner  was  able  to 
get  out  of  him. 

"  You'll  be  cared  for  here  to-night — I'll  speak 
to  Mr.  Potter,"  said  Mr.  Cameron.  "  And  in  the 
morning  I'll  decide  what's  to  be  done  with  you." 

"Why,  Dad!  we're  going " 

Tom  had  begun  this  speech  when  his  father 
warned  him  with  a  look  to  be  still. 

"  You'll  be  all  right  here,"  pursued  Mr.  Cam- 
eron, cheerfully.  "Aunt  Alviry  and  Ruth  will 
look  after  you.  Why!  I  wouldn't  want  better 
nurses  if  /  was  sick." 


A  NEWSPAPER   CUPPING 


23 


11  But  I'm  not  sick,"  said  Fred  Hatfield,  as  the 
little  old  woman  hobbled  in  with  a  steaming  bowl. 
His  eyes  were  wolfish  when  he  saw  the  gruel, 
however. 

"  No,  you're  not  so  sick  but  that  a  good,  square 
meal  would  be  your  best  medicine,  I'll  be  bound," 
cried  the  gentleman,  laughing. 

He  went  out  to  the  mill  then  and  was  gone 
some  moments;  when  he  returned  he  called  Helen 
and  Tom  to  come  with  him  quickly  to  the  car. 

"  Remember  and  be  ready  as  early  as  nine 
o'clock,  Ruth!  "  called  Helen,  looking  back  as  she 
climbed  into  the  automobile. 

When  her  friends  had  bowled  away  up  the 
frozen  road,  Ruth  came  back  into  the  kitchen. 
Aunt  Alvirah  was  still  in  the  bedroom  with  their 
strange  guest.  Of  a  sudden  the  girl's  eye  caught 
sight  of  the  newspaper  clipping  laid  on  the  win- 
dow sill  to  dry. 

Mr.  Cameron  had  placed  the  old  wallet  belong- 
ing to  Fred  Hatfield's  father  on  the  table  when  he 
came  out  of  the  bedroom.  Now  Ruth  picked  it 
up,  found  it  dry,  and  went  to  the  window  to  re- 
place the  clipping  in  it.  It  was  the  most  natural 
thing  in  the  world  for  Ruth  to  glance  at  the  slip 
of  paper  when  she  picked  it  up.  There  is  nothing 
secret  about  a  newspaper  clipping;  it  was  no  in- 
fringement of  good  manners  to  read  the  article. 

And  read  it  Ruth  did  when  she  had  once  seeo 


24  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

the  heading — she  read  it  all  through  with  breath- 
less attention.  Her  rosy  face  paled  as  she  came 
to  the  conclusion,  and  she  glanced  suddenly  to- 
ward the  bedroom  as  she  heard  Aunt  Alvirah's 
voice  again. 

Dropping  the  old  wallet  on  the  table,  Ruth 
folded  the  clipping  and  hastily  thrust  it  into  the 
bosom  of  her  frock.  She  did  not  dare  face  the 
old  woman  when  she  appeared,  but  kept  her  back 
turned  until  she  was  sure  the  color  had  returned 
to  her  cheeks.  And  all  the  time  she  helped  Aunt 
Alvirah  get  supper,  Ruth  was  very,  very  silent. 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE   MYSTERIOUS   BEHAVIOR  OF   FRED   HATFIELD 

Uncle  Jabez  Potter  came  in  from  the  mill 
after  a  time.  He  was  a  gaunt,  gray-faced  man, 
who  seldom  smiled,  and  whose  stern,  rugged 
countenance  had  at  first  almost  frightened  Ruth 
whenever  she  looked  at  it.  But  she  had  fortu- 
nately gotten  under  the  crust  of  Mr.  Potter's 
manner  and  learned  that  there  was  something 
better  there  than  the  harsh  surface  the  miller 
turned  to   all  the  world. 

Uncle  Jabez  hoarded  money  for  the  pleasure 
of  hoarding  it;  but  he  had  been  generous  to  Ruth, 
having  put  her  at  one  of  the  best  boarding  schools 
in  the  State.  He  could  be  charitable  at  times, 
too ;  Aunt  Alvirah  could  testify  to  that  fact.  So 
could  a  certain  little  lame  friend  of  Ruth  Field- 
ing, Mercy  Curtis,  who  was  attending  Briarwood 
Hall  as  the  result  of  the  combined  charity  of 
Uncle  Jabez  and  Dr.  Davison,  of  Cheslow. 

But  it  is  said  that  "charity  begins  at  home"; 
when  charity  begins  in  a  man's  very  bed,  that 
seems  a  little  too  near !  At  least,  so  Mr.  Potter 
thought. 

25 


26  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

"  What's  this  I  hear  about  a  vagabond  boy  in 
my  bed,  Aunt  Alviry?"  he  demanded,  when  he 
came  in. 

"  The  poor  child!  "  said  the  old  woman.  "  Oh, 
my  back,  and  oh,  my  bones!  Come  in  and  see 
him,  Jabez,"  she  urged,  hobbling  toward  the 
passage. 

"No.  Who  is  he?  What  is  he  here  for? 
That  Cameron  talks  so  fast  I  never  can  get  the 
rights  of  what  he's  saying  till  afterward.  Says 
the  boy  belongs  up  there  where  he  wants  to  take 
Ruth  to-morrow?  " 

"  He  has  run  away  from  his  home  at  Scarboro, 
Uncle/1  said  Ruth.  " 

"Young  villain!  A  widder's  son,  too!"  said 
her  uncle. 

"  He  says  his  father  is  dead,"  said  Ruth,  hesi- 
tating. 

"I  venture  to  say!"  exclaimed  Jabez  Potter. 
"  And  he's  in  my  bed;  is  he?  " 

He  came  back  to  this  as  being  a  reason  for 
objection. 

"  Now,  now,  Jabez,"  said  Aunt  Alvirah,  sooth- 
ingly. "  He  ain't  hurted  the  bed.  He  was  wet — 
the  coat  frozen  right  on  him — when  they  brought 
him  in.  I  had  to  git  him  atween  blankets  jest  as 
quick  as  I  could.  And  your  bedroom  isn't  so  cold 
as  the  rooms  upstairs." 

"Well?"  grunted  Mr.  Potter. 


THE   MYSTERIOUS   BEHAVIOR   OF   FRED      27 

11  Before  bedtime  I'll  make  him  up  a  couch  in 
here  near  the  fire  and  put  your  bed  straight  for 
you." 

"  Young  vagabond!"  grunted  Mr.  Potter. 
"  Don't  know  who  he  is.  May  rob  us  before 
morning.  Perhaps  he  come  here  for  just  that 
purpose." 

"  That's  not  possible,  Uncle,"  said  Ruth, 
laughing.  She  told  him  the  story  of  their  adven- 
ture with  the  bull  and  Fred  Hatfield's  appear- 
ance. Yet  all  the  time  she  looked  worried  her- 
self. There  was  something  troubling  the  girl  of 
the  Red  Mill. 

Ruth  took  the  tray  into  the  bedroom  with  the 
supper  that  Aunt  Alvirah  had  prepared.  There 
was  a  flaming  red  spot  in  the  center  of  each  of 
the  boy's  pallid  cheeks,  and  his  eyes  were  still 
bright.  He  had  no  little  fever  after  the  chill  of 
his  plunge  into  the  creek.  But  the  fever  might 
have  been  as  much  from  a  mental  as  a  physical 
cause. 

It  was  on  Ruth's  lips  to  ask  the  boy  certain 
questions.  That  newspaper  clipping  fairly  burned 
in  the  bosom  of  her  frock.  But  his  suppressed 
excitement  warned  her  to  be  silent. 

He  was  hungry  still.  It  was  plain  that  he  had 
been  without  proper  food  for  some  time.  But  in 
the  midst  of  his  appreciation  of  the  meal  he  asked 
Ruth,  suddenly: 


28  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

"  Wasn't  there  anything  in  that  wallet  when 
you  gave  it  to  that  man,  Miss?  " 

"  No,"  she  replied,  truthfully  enough. 

"  No.  He  didn't  say  there  was,"  muttered  the 
boy,  and  said  not  another  word. 

Ruth  watched  him  eat.  He  did  not  raise  his 
light  eyes  to  her.  The  color  faded  out  of  his 
cheeks.  She  knew  that  it  was  actual  starvation 
that  kept  him  eating;  but  he  was  greatly  troubled 
in  his  mind.  She  went  back  to  her  own  supper, 
and  remained  very  quiet  all  through  the  evening. 

Later  Aunt  Alvirah  made  up  the  couch  with 
plenty  of  blankets  and  thick,  downy  "  comfort- 
ers," and  when  Ruth  had  gone  to  bed  the  boy 
came  out  into  the  kitchen  and  left  Uncle  Jabez 
free  to  seek  his  own  repose.  But  though  the 
whole  house  slept,  Ruth  could  not — at  first.  Long 
after  it  was  still,  and  she  knew  Aunt  Alvirah  was 
asleep  and  Uncle  Jabez  was  snoring,  Ruth  arose, 
slipped  on  a  warm  wrapper  and  her  slippers,  and 
squeezing  something  tightly  between  her  fingers, 
crept  down  the  stairs  to  the  kitchen  door.  She 
unlatched  it  softly  and  let  it  swing  open  a  couple 
of  inches. 

There  was  a  stir  within.  She  waited,  holding 
her  breath.  She  heard  the  couch  creak.  Then 
came  the  sound  of  a  shuffling  step. 

The  moonlight  lay  in  a  broad  band  under  the 
front  window.    Into  this  radiance  moved  the  fig- 


THE   MYSTERIOUS    BEHAVIOR   OF   FRED      29 

ure  of  the  vagabond  boy,  shrouded  in  a  blanket. 
He  came  to  the  table  and  he  felt  around  until  he 
found  the  wallet.  He  had  doubtless  marked  it 
lying  there  by  the  window  before  Aunt  Alvirah 
had  put  the  lamp  out  and  left  him. 

He  seized  the  wallet  and  opened  it  wide.  He 
shook  it  over  the  table.  Then  Ruth  heard  him 
groan: 

"It's  gone!  it's  gone!" 

He  stood  there,  shaking,  and  dropped  the 
leather  case  unnoticed.  For  half  a  minute  he 
stood  there,  uncertain  and — Ruth  thought — sob- 
bing softly.  Then  the  boy  approached  the  gar- 
ments hung  upon  the  chairs  about  the  stove, 
wherein  the  coal  fire  was  banked  for  the 
night. 

He  stopped  before  he  touched  his  undercloth- 
ing. All  these  garments  were  well  dried  by  this 
time;  but  Aunt  Alvirah  had  wished  them  left 
there  to  be  warm  when  he  put  them  on  in  the 
morning.  Ruth  knew  exactly  what  Fred  Hatfield 
had  in  his  mind.  The  vagabond  boy  was  deter- 
mined to  dress  quietly  and  secretly  leave  the 
miller's    house. 

But  when  Master  Fred  touched  the  first  gar- 
ment Ruth  rattled  the  door  latch  ever  so  lighdy. 
Fred  stopped  and  turned  fearfully  in  that  direc- 
tion. His  lips  parted.  She  could  see  that  he  was 
panting  with  fear. 


30  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

Ruth  rattled  the  latch  again.  He  ran  back  to 
his  couch  and  plunged  into  the  comforters  with  a 
gasp.  Ruth  pulled  the  door  quietly  to  and  stood 
there,  shivering  in  the  dark,  wondering  what  to 
do.  She  knew  that  the  boy  had  it  in  his  mind  to 
escape.  She  did  not  wish  to  arouse  Uncle  Jabez. 
Nor  did  she  wish  the  strange  boy  to  depart  so 
secretly. 

Mr.  Cameron  expected  to  find  him  here  when 
he  came  in  the  morning,  she  was  sure.  Although 
Mr.  Cameron  only  supposed  him  an  ordinary 
runaway,  and  perhaps  wished  to  advise  him  to  re- 
turn to  his  mother,  Ruth  knew  well  that  Fred 
JHatfield's  was  no  ordinary  case  of  vagabond- 
age. 

Ruth  hesitated  on  the  stairs  for  some  minutes. 
Uncle  Jabez  snored.  There  was  no  further 
movement  from  the  boy  on  the  couch. 

She  was  growing  very  cold.  Ruth  could  not 
remain  there  on  the  stairs  to  guard  the  boy  all 
night.  Something  desperate  had  to  be  done — and 
something  very  desperate  she  did! 

She  unlatched  the  door  again  as  quietly  as  pos- 
sible. She  pushed  it  open  far  enough  to  slip 
through  into  the  kitchen.  There  was  no  move- 
ment from  the  boy — not  a  sound.  Nor  did  Ruth 
dare  even  look  in  his  direction. 

She  crept  across  the  kitchen  floor  to  the  stove. 
She  reached  the  garments  hung  upon  the  chair 


THE   MYSTERIOUS   BEHAVIOR   OF   FRED      31 

backs.    She  selected  one  and  withdrew  in  a  hurry 
to  the  staircase,  and  so  ran  up  to  her  room. 

11  There  I  "  she  thought,  shutting  her  door  and 
breathing  heavily.  "  If  he  wants  to  run  away  he 
can ;  but  hell  have  to  go  without  his  trousers ! " 


CHAPTER   V 

OFF    FOR    THE    BACKWOODS 

It  was  still  dark  when  Ruth  awoke  and  slipped 
down  to  the  kitchen  again.  But  she  heard  her 
uncle  rattling  the  stove  grate.  He  was  a  very 
early  riser.  She  peered  into  the  kitchen  and  saw 
the  grove  of  drying  clothing,  so  knew  that  her 
trick  of  the  night  before  had  kept  Fred  Hatfield 
from  running  away. 

Therefore  she  merely  dropped  the  boy's  nether 
garments  inside  the  kitchen  door  and  scurried 
back  to  her  own  room  to  dress  by  candle-light. 
She  heard  Aunt  Alvirah  stumbling  about  her 
room  and  groaning  her  old,  old  tune,  "Oh,  my 
back,  and  oh,  my  bones !  "  As  soon  as  Ruth  was 
dressed  she  ran  in  to  see  if  she  could  do  anything 
for  the  old  woman. 

"Ah,  deary!  what  a  precious  pretty  you  be," 
said  the  old  woman,  hugging  her.  "  I'm  so  glad 
to  see  you  again  after  your  being  away  so  long. 
And  your  Uncle's  that  proud  of  you,  too!  He 
often  reads  the  reports  the  school  teacher  sends 
him — I  see  him  doing  that  in  the  evening.  He 
keeps  the  reports  in  his  cash-box,  just  as  though 

32 


OFF  FOR  THE   BACKWOODS 


33 


they  was  as  precious  as  his  stocks  and  bonds. 
Yes-indeedy!  " 

"You  are  so  glad  to  have  me  at  home,  Aunt 
Alvirah,  that  I  feel  guilty  to  be  going  away  again 
so  soon,"  Ruth  said. 

"  No,  honey.  Have  your  good  times  while  ye 
may,  my  pretty  creetur.  It's  mighty  nice  of  the 
Camerons  to  take  you  away  with  them.  You  go 
and  have  a  good  time.  Your  trunk's  all  packed 
and  ready,  and  your  young  friend,  Helen,  would 
be  dreadful  disappointed  if  you  didn't  go.  Now, 
let's  go  down  and  git  breakfast.  Jabez  has  been 
up  for  some  time  and  I  heard  him  just  go  out  to 
the  mill.  That  boy  must  be  up  and  dressed  by 
now,  for  if  he  had  been  sick,  Jabez  would  have 
hollered  up  the  stairs  about  it." 

She  was  right.  Fred  Hatfield  was  completely 
dressed  when  they  came  into  the  kitchen.  Ruth 
did  not  look  at  him,  but  busied  herself  with  the 
details  of  getting  breakfast.  She  did  not  speak 
to  him,  nor  did  Fred  speak  to  her.  But  Aunt 
Alvirah  was  as  cheerful  and  as  chatty  as  ever. 

Uncle  Jabez  was  never  talkative;  but  he  was  no 
more  taciturn  this  morning  than  was  their  guest. 
The  boy  ate  his  breakfast  with  downcast  eyes  and 
only  said  timidly,  at  the  end  of  the  meal: 

"  I'm  real  obliged  for  your  kindness,  Mr.  Pot- 
ter. I  think  I'm  all  right  again  now.  Can't  I  do 
some  work  for  you  to  pay " 


34  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"  I  don't  need  another  hand  at  the  mill — and  I 
couldn't  make  use  of  a  boy  like  you  at  all,"  said 
Mr.  Potter,  hastily.  "You  wait  till  Mr.  Cam- 
eron comes  here  this  morning." 

Ruth  saw  that  there  was  an  understanding  be- 
tween her  uncle  and  Mr.  Cameron  regarding  this 
boy.     But  Fred  said,  still  hesitating: 

"  If — if  I  can't  do  anything  to  repay  you,  I'd 
rather  go  on.  I  was  making  for  Cheslow.  I'll 
get  a  job " 

"  You  wait  here  as  you're  told,  boy,"  snapped 
Uncle  Jabez,  and  the  runaway  shrank  into  his 
chair  again  and  said  nothing  more. 

Breakfast  at  the  Red  Mill  was  always  early; 
it  had  been  finished  before  seven  o'clock  on  this 
clear  winter  morning.  It  was  a  fine  day  when 
the  sun  appeared,  and  Ruth's  mind — .at  least,  a 
part  of  it! — delighted  in  the  thought  of  the  jour- 
ney to  be  taken  into  the  great  woods  to  the  north 
and  east  of  Osago  Lake.  She  had  several  little 
things  to  do  in  preparation;  therefore  she  could 
not  be  blamed  if  she  lost  sight  of  Fred  Hatfield 
occasionally. 

Suddenly,  however,  she  found  that  he  had  left 
the  kitchen.  She  cried  up  the  stairs  to  Aunt  Al- 
virah: 

"  Have  you  seen  him,  Auntie?    Where  is  he?  " 

"  Where's  who?"  returned  the  old  woman. 

"  That  boy.    He's  not  here." 


OFF  FOR  THE    BACKWOODS  35 

"  For  the  land's  sake !  "  returned  Aunt  Al- 
virah.  "  I  dunno.  Didn't  your  uncle  tell  him 
to  wait  for  Mr.  ^^neron  here?" 

"But  he's  gone!"  erclaimed  Ruth;  and  pick- 
ing up  her  cap  she  pulled  it  on,  and  likewise  her 
sweater,  and  went  out  of  the  house  with  a  bang. 
He  was  not  on  the  road  to  Cheslow.  She  could 
see  that,  straight  before  the  mill,  for  a  mile.  She 
ran  down  to  the  gate  and  looked  along  the  river 
road,  up  stream.  No  figure  appeared  there.  Nor 
in  the  other  direction — although  the  Camerons' 
car  would  appear  from  that  way,  and  if  the  run- 
away went  in  that  direction  he  would  surely  run 
right  into  the  Camerons. 

"  He  slipped  out  of  the  back  door — towards 
the  river,"  she  whispered. 

Back  she  ran  into  the  house.  She  caught  up 
her  skates  in  the  back  hall  and  burst  out  upon 
the  back  porch,  which  was  partly  enclosed. 
There  was  the  figure  of  Fred  Hatfield  on  the  ice 
— some  distance,  already,  from  the  shore. 

Ruth  ran  eagerly  down  to  the  shore.  She 
had  no  idea  what  young  Hatfield  intended;  but 
she  was  well  aware  that  he  could  get  across  the 
Lumano  if  he  chose;  the  ice  was  thick  enough. 

She  quickly  clamped  the  skates  upon  her  shoes, 
and  within  five  minutes  was  darting  off  across  the 
ice. 

Hatfield  heard  the  ring  of  her  skates  within  a 


36  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

very  few  moments;  he  threw  a  glance  over  his 
shoulder,  saw  her,  and  then  began  to  run.  It 
was  a  feeble  attempt  to  escape,  for  unless  some 
accident  happened  to  Ruth,  she  could  easily  over- 
take him. 

And  she  did  so,  although  he  ran  straight 
ahead,  and  ran  so  hard  that  finally  he  slipped 
and  fell,  panting,  to  his  knees.  Ruth  was  beside 
him  before  he  could  rise. 

"Don't  you  be  such  a  ridiculous  boy!"  she 
commanded,  seizing  the  lad  by  the  shoulder,  as 
he  attempted  to  rise.  "  You  mustn't  run  away. 
Mr.  Cameron  expects  to  find  you  at  the  mill,  and 
you  must  stay.  And  they'll  be  here,  ready  to 
take  the  train  from  Cheslow,  shortly." 

14 1 — I  don't  want  to  stay  here,"  stammered  the 
boy.     "  I — I  don't  want  to  see  that  man  again." 

"  But  he  expects  to  see  you,  and  I  could  not  let 
you  go  before  he  comes." 

"  You're  just  the  meanest  girl  I  ever  saw !  " 
cried  Hatfield,  almost  in  tears.  "  I'd  got  away 
in  the  night  if  it  hadn't  been  for  you." 

Ruth  fairly  giggled  at  that — she  couldn't  help 
it. 

"  Well,  don't  you  be  nasty  about  it,"  she  said. 
"You  are  a  dreadfully  foolish  boy " 

"What  do  you  know  about  me?"  he  gasped, 
turning  to  look  at  her  finally  with  frightened 
eyes. 


OFF  FOR  THE   BACKWOODS  37 

"  I  know  that  running  away  isn't  going  to  help 
you,"  Ruth  Fielding  said,  with  returning  gravity. 

"  You  think  that  man — that  Cameron  man — 
will  take  me  back?" 

"Back  where?" 

"To— to  Scarboro?" 

"  I  don't  know." 

"  I  tell  you  I  won't  go,"  the  boy  cried.  "  I 
won't  go." 

"  But  we're  all  going  up  there  this  very  day," 
said  Ruth,  slowly.  "  Mr.  Cameron,  and  Helen 
and  Tom,  and  some  other  girls  and  boys.  I'm 
going,  too " 

"Going  where?"  shrieked  Fred  Hatfield, 
actually  shaking  with  terror,  and  as  pale  as  a 
ghost. 

"  We're  off  for  the  backwoods — up  Scarboro 
way.  Mr.  Cameron  is  going  to  take  us  for  a 
fortnight  to  Snow  Camp.     And  you " 

With  another  wild  cry  Fred  Hatfield  crumpled 
down  upon  the  ice  and  burst  into  a  tempest  of 
sobbing.  He  beat  his  ungloved  hands  upon  the 
ice,  and  although  Ruth  could  not  help  feeling 
contempt  for  a  boy  who  would  so  give  way  to 
weakness  she  could  not  help  but  pity  him,  too. 

For  Ruth  Fielding  had  more  than  an  inkling 
of  the  trouble  that  so  weighed  Fred  Hatfield 
down,  and  had  made  him  an  outcast  from  his 
home  and  friends. 


CHAPTER  VI 

ON  THE  TRAIN 

When  the  Cameron  automobile  arrived  at 
the  Red  Mill  that  forenoon  Fred  Hatfield  sat 
gloomily  upon  the  porch  steps.  Ruth  kept  an 
eye  on  him  from  the  doorway.  Mr.  Cameron 
seemed  to  understand  their  position  when  he  came 
up  the  walk,  and  asked  Ruth : 

"  So,  he  wants  to  leave;  does  he?" 

Ruth  merely  nodded;  but  Fred  Hatfield 
scowled  at  the  dry-goods  merchant  and  turned 
away  his  head. 

"  Now,  young  man,"  said  Mr.  Cameron,  stand- 
ing in  front  of  the  sullen  boy,  with  his  legs  wide 
apart  and  a  smile  upon  his  ruddy  face,  "  now, 
young  man,  let's  get  to  the  bottom  of  this.  You 
confide  in  me,  and  I  will  not  betray  your  confi- 
dence.    Why  don't  you  want  to  live  at  home?" 

"  I  don't  want  to — that's  all,"  muttered  Fred 
Hatfield,  shortly.      "  And  I  won't!' 

Mr.  Cameron  shook  his  head.  "  I  hate  to  see 
one  so  young  so  obstinate,"  he  said.  "  It  may 
be  that  your  mother  and  brothers  and  sisters  find 

38 


ON   THE  TRAIN 


39 


you  a  sore  trial;  perhaps  they  are  glad  you  are 
not  at  home.  But  until  I  am  sure  of  that  I  con- 
sider it  my  duty  to  keep  an  eye  on  you.  I  want 
you  to  come  along  with  us  to-day." 

"  I  know  where  you  are  going.  This  girl  has 
told  me,"  said  the  light-haired  youth,  nodding  at 
Ruth.     "  You're  going  up  to  Scarboro." 

"Yes.  And  I  propose  to  take  you  with  us. 
We'll  see  whether  your  mother  wants  you  or 


not." 


"  You  don't  know  what  you're  doing,  sir!" 
gasped  Fred  Hatfield,  crouching  down  upon  the 
step. 

"  I  certainly  do  not  know  what  I  am  doing," 
admitted  Mr.  Cameron.  "But  that  is  your 
fault,  not  mine.     If  you  would  trust  us " 

"  I  can't ! "  cried  the  boy,  shaking  as  though 
with  a  chill. 

"  Then,  you  come  along;  young  man,"  com- 
manded the  merchant. 

He  put  a  hand  upon  Fred's  shoulder  and  the 
boy  wriggled  out  from  under  it  and  started  to 
run.  But  Tom  had  got  out  of  the  automobile 
and  seemed  rather  expecting  this  move.  He 
sprang  for  the  other  boy  and  held  him. 

"Here!  hold  on!"  he  cried.  "Put  on  this 
old  overcoat  of  mine  that  I've  brought  along. 
It's  going  to  be  cold  riding.  Put  it  on — and  then 
get  into  the  auto  with  us.    Aw,  come  on,!    What 


4o  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

are  you  afraid  of?    We  aren't  going  to  eat  you." 

Snivelling,  but  ceasing  his  struggles,  Fred  Hat- 
field got  into  the  coat  Tom  offered  him,  and  en- 
tered the  car.  Ruth  said  never  a  word,  but  she 
looked  very  grave. 

Uncle  Jabez  came  to  the  door  of  the  mill  and 
Ruth  ran  to  him  and  kissed  the  old  miller  good- 
bye. Not  that  he  returned  the  kiss ;  Uncle  Jabez 
looked  as  though  he  had  never  kissed  anybody 
since  he  was  born!  But  Aunt  Alvirah  hugged 
and  caressed'  her  "  pretty  creetur  "  with  a  warmth 
that  made  up  for  the  miller's  coldness. 

"Bless  ye,  deary!"  crooned  the  little  old 
woman,  enfolding  Ruth  in  her  arms.  "  Go  and 
have  the  best  of  times  with  your  young  friends. 
We'll  be  thinkin'  of  ye  here — and  don't  run  into 
peril  up  there  in  the  woods.     Have  a  care." 

"  Oh,  we  won't  get  into  any  trouble,"  Ruth 
declared,  happily,  with  no  suspicion  of  what  was 
before  the  party  in  the  backwoods.  "  Good- 
bye!" 

11  Good-bye,  Ruthie — Oh,  my  back  and  oh,  my 
bones !  "  groaned  Aunt  Alvirah,  as  she  hobbled 
into  the  house  again,  while  Ruth  ran  down  to 
the  car,  leaped  aboard,  and  the  chauffeur  started 
immediately.  Ben,  the  hired  man,  had  gone  on 
to  Cheslow  with  Ruth's  trunk  early  in  the  morn- 
ing, and  now  the  automobile  sped  quickly  over 
the  smooth  road  to  the  railroad  station. 


ON   THE   TRAIN 


4? 


By  several  different  ways — for  Cheslow  was  a 
junction  of  the  railroad  lines — the  young  folk 
who  had  been  invited  to  Snow  Camp  had  gath- 
ered at  the  station  to  meet  the  Camerons  and 
Ruth  Fielding.  Nobody  noticed  Fred  Hatfield, 
saving  Mr.  Cameron  and  Ruth  herself;  but  the 
runaway  found  no  opportunity  of  leaving  the 
party.  Tom  had  no  attention  to  give  the  Scar- 
boro  boy  as  he  welcomed  his  own  chums. 

"  Here's  old  Bobbins  and  Busy  Izzy!"  he 
cried,  seeing  Bob  Steele  and  his  sister,  with  Isa- 
dore  Phelps,  pacing  the  long  platform  as  the  car 
halted. 

Bob  Steele  was  a  big,  yellow-haired  boy,  rosy 
cheeked  and  good-natured,  but  not  a  little  bash- 
ful. As  Madge,  his  sister,  was  a  year  and  a  half 
older  than  Bob  she  often  treated  him  like  a  very 
small  boy  indeed. 

"Now,  Master  Cameron !"  she  cried,  when 
Tom  appeared,  "  don't  muss  his  nice  clean 
clothes.  Be  careful  he  doesn't  get  into  anything. 
Be  a  good  boy,  Bobbie,  and  the  choo-choo  cars, 
will  soon  come." 

Isadore  Phelps  was  a  sharp-looking  boy,  with 
red  hair  and  so  many  freckles  across  the  bridge 
of  his  nose  and  under  his  eyes  that,  at  a  little  dis- 
tance, he  looked  as  though  he  wore  a  brown 
mask.  Isadore  seldom  spoke  without  asking  a 
question.     He  was  a  walking  interrogation  point*, 


42  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

Perhaps  that  was  one  reason  why  he  was  known 
among  his  mates  as  "  Busy  Izzy,"  being  usually 
busy  about  other  people's  business. 

"  What  do  you  let  her  nag  you  for  that  way, 
Bob?  "  he  cried.  "  I'd  shake  her,  if  she  was  my 
sister — wouldn't  you,  Tom?" 

"  No,"  said  Tom,  boldly,  for  he  considered 
Madge  Steele  quite  a  young  lady.  "She's  too 
big  to  shake — isn't  she,  Bobbins?" 

But  Bob  only  smiled  in  his  slow  way,  and  said 
nothing.  The  girls  were  in  a  group  by  them- 
selves— Helen  and  Ruth,  Belle  and  Lluella,  Jen- 
nie Stone  (who  rejoiced  in  the  nickname  of 
"  Heavy  "  because  of  her  plumpness)  and  Madge 
Steele.  Mr.  Cameron  had  gone  to  the  ticket 
window  to  make  an  inquiry.  It  was  Ruth  who 
saw  Fred  Hatfield  making  across  the  tracks  to 
where  a  freight  train  was  being  made  up  for  the 
south. 

"  Tom ! "  she  cried  to  Helen's  brother,  and  he 
turned  and  saw  her  glance. 

"  By  George,  fellows  1 "  exclaimed  Tom,  with 
some  disgust.  "  There's  that  chap  sneaking  off 
again.     We've  got  to  watch  him.     Come  on!" 

He  ran  after  the  runaway.  Busy  Izzy  was  at 
l?is  ear  in  a  moment: 

k  What's  the  matter  with  him?  Who  is  he? 
What's  he  been  doing?  Is  he  trying  to  get 
aboard  that  freight?  What  do  you  want  of 
him?" 


ON   THE  TRAIN 


43 


"OH,  hush!  hush!"  begged  Tom.  "Your 
clatter  would  deafen  one."  Then  he  shouted  to 
Hatfield:  "Hold  on,  there!  the  train  will  be  in 
soon.     Come  back!  " 

Hatfield  stopped  and  turned  back  with  a  scowl 
Tom  grinned  at  him  cheerfully  and  added: 

"  Might  as  well  take  it  easy.  Dad  says  you're 
to  go  along  with  us,  so  I  advise  you  to  stick 
close." 

"  Pleasant-looking  young  dog,"  said  Bob,  in 
an  undertone.     "What's  he  done?" 

"  I  don't  know  that  he  has  done  anything,"  re- 
turned Tom,  in  the  same  low  tone.  "  But  we're 
going  to  take  him  with  us  to  Scarboro.  That  is 
the  place  he  has  run  away  from." 

"Did  he  run  away  from  home?"  demanded 
Isadore  Phelps.     "What  for?" 

"I  don't  know.  But  don't  you  ask  him!" 
commanded  Tom,  "  He  wouldn't  tell  you,  any- 
way; he  won't  tell  father.  But  don't  nag  him, 
Izzy." 

To  the  great  surprise  of  the  young  folks,  when 
the  train  bound  north  came  along,  there  was  a 
private  car  attached  to  it,  and  in  that  car  the 
Cameron  party  were  to  travel.  One  of  the  rail- 
road officials  had  lent  his  own  coach  to  the  Ches- 
low  merchant,  and  he  and  his  party  had  the  car 
to  themselves. 

There  was  a  porter  and  a  steward  aboard — 
both  colored   men;    and   soon    after  the    train 


44  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

started  odors  from  the  tiny  kitchen  assured  the 
girls  and  boys  that  they  were  to  have  luncheon 
on  the  train. 

"Isn't  it  delightful?"  sighed  Heavy,  gustily, 
in  Ruth's  ear.  "  Riding  through  the  country  on 
this  fast  train  and  being  served  with  our  meals — 
Oh,  dear!  why  weren't  all  fathers  born  rich?" 

"  It's  lucky  your  father  isn't  any  richer  than 
he  is,  Jennie  Stone!"  whispered  Madge  Steele, 
who  heard  this.  "  If  he  was,  you'd  do  nothing 
but  eat  all  the  livelong  day." 

"  Well,  I  might  do  a  deal  worse,"  returned 
Heavy.  "  Father  says  that  himself.  He  says 
he  wishes  my  reports  were  better  at  Briarwood; 
but  he  can't  expect  me  to  put  on  flesh  and  gain 
much  learning  at  the  same  time — not  when  the 
days  are  only  twenty-four  hours  long." 

They  all  laughed  a  good  deal  at  Heavy,  but 
she  was  so  good-natured  that  the  girls  all  liked 
her,  too.  What  they  should  do  when  they 
reached  Snow  Camp  was  the  principal  topic  of 
conversation.  As  the  train  swept  northward  the 
snow  appeared.  It  was  piled  in  fence  corners 
and  lay  deep  in  the  woods.  Some  ice-bound 
streams  and  ponds  were  thickly  mantled  in  the 
white  covering. 

Mr.  Cameron  read  his  papers  or  wrote  letters 
in  one  compartment;  Mrs.  Murchiston  was  the 
girls'  companion  most  of  the  time,  while  Tom  and 


ON  THE  TRAIN  45 

his  two  chums  had  a  gay  time  by  themselves. 
They  tried  to  get  Fred  Hatfield  into  their  com- 
pany, but  the  runaway  boy  would  not  respond  to 
their  overtures. 

At  the  dinner  table,  when  the  fun  became  fast 
and  furious,  Fred  Hatfield  did  not  even  smile. 
Heavy  whispered  to  Ruth  that  she  never  did  see 
a  boy  before  who  was  so  dreadfully  solemn. 
"  And  he  grows  solemner  and  solemner  every 
mile  we  travel !  "  added  Heavy.  "  What  do  you 
suppose  is  on  his  mind?" 

Ruth  was  quite  sure  she  knew  what  was  on  the 
lad's  mind;  but  she  did  not  say.  Indeed,  all  the 
day  long  she  was  troubled  by  the  special  knowl- 
edge she  had  gained  from  the  newspaper  clip- 
ping that  she  carried  hidden  in  the  bottom  of  her 
pocket.  Should  she  tell  Mr.  Cameron  about  it? 
Should  she  speak  plainly  to  Fred  himself  about  it? 
The  nearer  they  approached  Scarboro  the  more 
uncertain  she  became,  and  the  more  sullen  Fred 
Hatfield  looked. 

Ruth  watched  him  a  good  deal,  but  so  covertly 
that  her  girl  friends  did  not  notice  her  abstraction. 
The  short  Winter  day  was  beginning  to  draw  in' 
and  the  red  sun  was  hanging  low  above  the  tree- 
tops  when  Mr.  Cameron  announced  that  the  sec- 
ond stop  of  the  train  would  be  their  destination. 
The  party — at  least,  Mr.  Cameron,  the  governess, 
and  the  young  folk — were  to  remain  at  the  hotel 


46  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

in  Scarboro  over-night.  The  serving  people  and 
the  baggage  were  to  go  on  that  evening  to  Snow 
Camp. 

Fred  Hatfield  sauntered  to  the  rear  of  the  car 
and  stood  looking  out  of  the  window  in  the  door. 
The  flagman  was  on  the  rear  platform,  however, 
and  he  could  not  get  down  without  being  ob- 
served. The  stop  at  this  town  was  brief;  then 
the  train  sped  on  through  the  deep  woods. 

But  suddenly  the  airbrakes  were  put  on  again 
and  they  slowed  down  with  a  good  deal  of  clatter 
and  bumping. 

"We're  not  at  Scarboro  yet,  surely ?"  cried 
Mrs.    Murchiston. 

"  No,  no ! "  Mr.  Cameron  assured  them. 
"  We're  stopping  from  some  other  cause — why, 
this  is  merely  a  flag  station.  Not  even  a  station 
— just  a  crossing." 

A  white-sheeted  road  crossed  the  rails.  There 
were  two  or  three  houses  in  sight  and  a  big  gen- 
eral store,  over  the  door  of  which  was  painted: 

EMORYVILLE  P.  O. 

But  the  train  had  stopped  and  the  rear  brake- 
man,  or  flagman,  seized  his  lamp  and  ran  back  to 
wait  for  the  engineer  to  recall  him.  It  was 
growing  dusk  and  the  lamps  had  been  lighted  the 
length  of  the  train.     The  general  interest  of  the 


ON  THE  TRAIN  47 

party  drew  their  attention  forward.  Ruth,  sud- 
denly remembering  Fred  Hatfield,  looked  toward 
the  rear  of  the  car.  Fred  was  just  going  out  of 
the  door  in  the  wake  of  the  brakeman. 

"  Oh,  he  mustn't  go !  "  whispered  Ruth  to  her- 
self, and  leaving  her  girl  companions  she  ran  back 
to  speak  to  the  runaway  boy.  When  she  reached 
the  door,  Fred  had  already  descended  the  steps. 
She  saw  him  run  across  the  tracks,  and  quick  as  a 
flash  she  sprang  down  after  him. 


CHAPTER  VII 

A  RUNAWAY  IN  GOOD  EARNEST 

Fred  Hatfield,  the  runaway,  was  approach- 
ing the  old,  rambling  country  store  at  Emoryville 
Crossroads.  It  was  so  cold  an  evening  that  there 
were  no  loungers  upon  the  high,  railless  porch 
which  extended  clear  across  the  front  of  the  build- 
ing. Indeed,  there  was  but  one  wagon  standing 
before  the  store  and  probably  there  were  very 
few  customers,  or  loungers  either,  inside.  The 
stopping  of  the  train  had  brought  nobody  to  the 
door. 

As  Fred  gained  the  sidewalk  in  front  of  the 
store  he  glanced  back.  There  was  Ruth  crossing 
the  tracks  behind  him. 

"  You  come  back !  Come  back  immediately, 
Fred  Hatfield!  "  she  called.  "  Come  back  or  I 
shall  call  Mr.  Cameron.', 

The  girl  had  been  his  Nemesis  all  day.  Fred 
knew  he  could  have  given  the  party  the  slip  at 
some  station,  had  Ruth  not  kept  such  a  sharp 
watch  upon  him.  And  here  she  was  on  his  very 
heels,  when  he  might  have  gotten  well  away. 

48 


A  RUNAWAY   IN   GOOD   EARNEST 


49 


The  next  stop  would  be  Scarboro.  Fred  did 
not  want  to  appear  in  Scarboro  again.  And  he 
had  a  suspicion  that  Ruth  knew  his  reasons  for 
desiring  to  keep  away  from  his  home  and  friends. 

He  looked  wildly  about  the  lonely  crossroads. 
The  panting  of  the  locomotive  exhaust  was  not 
the  only  sound  he  heard.  The  two  mules  hitched 
to  the  timber  wagon — the  only  wagon  standing  by 
the  store — jingled  their  harness  as  they  shook 
their  heads.  One  bit  at  the  other,  and  his  mate 
squealed  and  stamped.  They  were  young  mules 
and  full  of  " ginger";  yet  their  driver  had  care- 
lessly left  them  standing  unhitched  in  the  road. 

Fred  gave  another  glance  at  Ruth  and  kept  on 
running.  The  engineer  suddenly  whistled  for  the 
return  of  the  flagman.  But  none  of  the  train- 
hands — nor  did  the  party  in  the  private  car — 
notice  the  boy  and  girl  who  had  so  incautiously 
left  the  train. 

"  Come  back!  "  commanded  Ruth,  so  much  in- 
terested in  following  Fred  that  she  did  not  notice 
the  lantern  of  the  rear  brakeman  bobbing  along 
beside  the  ties.  In  a  moment  he  swung  himself 
aboard  the  private  car  and  his  lantern  described 
half  an  arc  in  the  dusk.  The  engine  answered 
with  a  loud  cough  and  the  heavy  train  began  to 
move. 

But  at  that  moment  Fred  Hatfield,  grown  des- 
perate because  of  Ruth's  pursuit,  leaped  aboard 


50  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

the  timber  wagon.  He  was  a  backwoods  boy 
himself;  he  knew  how  to  handle  mules.  He  gave 
a  shout  to  which  the  team  responded  instantly. 
They  leaped  ahead  just  as  Ruth  came  to  the  side 
of  the  long  reach  that  connected  the  small  pair 
of  front  wheels  with  the  huge  wheels  in  the  rear. 

"  Get  off  of  that  wagon,  Fred!  n  she  had  just 
cried,  when  the  mules  started.  She  was  directly 
in  front  of  the  large  rear  wheel.  If  it  struck  her 
— knocked  her  down — ran  over  her !  Fred  knew 
that  she  would  be  killed  and  he  seized  her  hands 
and  dragged  her  up  beside  him  on  the  jouncing 
timber-reach. 

"  Now  see  what  you've  done!  "  he  bawled,  as 
the  mules  broke  into  a  gallop. 

But  Ruth  was  too  frightened  for  the  moment 
to  speak.  Her  uncle  had  a  pair  of  mules,  and 
she  knew  just  how  hard  they  were  to  manage. 
And  this  pair  were  evidently  looking  toward  sup- 
per. They  flew  up  the  road,  directly  away  from 
the  railroad,  and  the  wagon  jounced  about  so  that 
she  could  only  hold  on  with  both  hands. 

"  Stop  them !      Stop  them !  "  she  cried. 

But  that  was  much  easier  said  than  done.  The 
animals  had  been  willing  enough  to  start  when 
given  the  word  by  a  stranger;  but  now  they  did 
not  recognize  their  master's  voice  when  the  boy 
yelled: 

"Yea-a!     Yea-ai" 


A   RUNAWAY  IN   GOOD   EARNEST 


51 


Instead  of  stopping,  the  mules  went  faster  and 
faster.  They  had  their  bits  'twixt  their  teeth  and 
were  running  away  in  good  earnest. 

Almost  immediately,  when  the  bumping  and 
jouncing  wagon  got  away  from  the  store  and  the 
two  or  three  neighboring  houses,  they  were  in  the 
deep  woods.  There  were  no  farms — no  clear- 
ings— not  even  an  open  patch  in  the  timber.  The 
snow  lay  deep  under  the  pines  and  firs.  The  road 
had  been  used  considerably  since  the  last  snow, 
and  the  ruts  were  deep.  Therefore  the  mules 
kept  to  the  beaten  track. 

"  Oh,  stop  them!  stop  them!"  moaned  Ruth, 
clinging  to  the  swaying,  jouncing  cart. 

"  I  can't!    I  can't!  "  repeated  the  terrified  boy. 

"Oh,  you  wicked,  wicked  boy!  you'll  kill  us 
both !  "  cried  Ruth. 

"  It's  your  own  fault  you're  here,"  returned 
Fred,  sharply.  "  And  I  wouldn't  never  have  got 
onto  the  wagon  if  you  hadn't  chased  me." 

■•  I  believe  you  are  the  very  worst  boy  who  ever 
lived!"  declared  the  girl  from  the  Red  Mill,  in 
both  anger  and  despair.  "  And  I  wish  I  had  let 
you  go  your  own  wicked  way." 

"  I  wish  you  had,"  growled  Hatfield,  and  then 
tried  to  soothe  the  running  mules  again. 

He  was  successful  in  the  end.  He  had  driven 
mules  before  and  understood  them.  The  beastsv 
after  traveling  at  least  two  miles,  began  to  slow 


52  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

down.  The  wagon  was  now  passing  through  a 
wild  piece  of  the  forest,  and  it  was  growing  dark 
very  fast.  Only  the  snow  on  the  ground  made  it 
possible  for  the  boy  and  girl  to  see  objects  at  a 
distance. 

Ruth  was  wondering  what  her  friends  would 
think  when  they  missed  her,  and  likewise  how  she 
would  ever  get  back  to  the  railroad.  Would  Mr. 
Cameron  send  back  for  her?  What  would  hap- 
pen to  her,  here  in  the  deep  woods,  even  when  the 
mules  stopped  so  that  she  dared  leap  down  from 
the  cart? 

And  just  then — before  these  questions  became 
very  pertinent  in  her  mind — she  was  startled  by 
a  wild  scream  from  the  bush  patch  beside  the 
road.  Fred  cried  out  in  new  alarm,  and  the 
mules  stopped  dead — for  a  moment.  They  were 
trembling  and  tossing  their  heads  wildly.  The 
awful,  blood-chilling  scream  was  repeated,  and 
there  was  the  soft  thudding  of  cushioned  paws  in 
the  bushes.  Some  beast  had  leaped  down  from 
a  tree-branch  to  the  hard  snow. 

"A  cat-o'-mountain!"  yelled  Fred  Hatfield, 
and  as  he  shouted,  the  lithe  cat  sprang  over  the 
brush  heap  and  landed  in  the  road,  right  beside 
the  timber  cart. 

Once  Ruth  had  been  into  the  menagerie  of  a 
traveling  circus  that  had  come  to  Darrowtown 
while  her  father  was  still  alive.     She  had  seen 


A  RUNAWAY   IN   GOOD   EARNEST  53 

there  a  panther,  and  the  wicked,  graceful,  writh- 
ing body  of  the  beast  had  frightened  her  more 
than  the  bulk  of  the  elephant  or  the  roaring  of 
the  lion.  This  great  cat,  crouching  close  to  the 
snow,  its  tail  sweeping  from  side  to  side,  all  its 
muscles  knotted  for  another  spring,  struck  Ruth 
dumb  and  helpless. 

Fortunately  her  gloved  hands  were  locked 
about  the  timber  on  which  she  lay,  for  the  next 
instant  a  third  savage  scream  parted  the  be- 
whiskered  lips  of  the  catamount  and  on  the  heels 
of  the  cry  the  mules  started  at  full  gallop.  The 
panther  sprang  into  the  air  like  a  rubber  ball. 
Had  the  mules  not  started  the  beast  must  have 
landed  fairly  upon  the  boy  and  the  girl  clinging 
to  the  reach  of  the  timber  wagon. 

But  providentially  Ruth  Fielding  and  her  com- 
panion escaped  this  immediate  catastrophe.  The 
savage  beast  landed  upon  the  wagon,  however — 
far  out  upon  the  end  of  the  timber,  beyond  the 
rear  wheels.  Mad  with  fright,  the  mules  tore  on 
along  the  wood  road.  There  were  many  turns 
in  it,  and  the  deep  ruts  shook  them  about  terrific- 
ally. Ruth  and  Fred  barely  retained  their  posi- 
tions on  the  cart — nor  was  the  catamount  in  better 
situation.  It  hung  on  with  all  its  claws,  yowling 
like  the  great  Tom-cat  it  was. 

On  and  on  plunged  the  poor  mules,  sweating 
and  fearful.     Ruth  and  Fred  Hatfield  clung  like 


54  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

mussels  to  a  rock,  while  the  panther  bounded  into 
the  air,  screeching  and  spitting,  always  catching 
the  tail  of  the  cart  as  it  came  down — afraid  to 
leap  off  and  likewise  afraid  to  hang  on. 

The  mules  came  to  a  hill.  They  were  badly 
winded  by  now  and  their  pace  grew  slower.  The 
panther  scratched  along  the  reach  nearer  to  the 
two  human  passengers,  and  Ruth  saw  its  eyes 
blazing  like  huge  carbuncles  in  the  dusk.  There 
was  a  fork  of  the  roads  at  the  foot  of  the  hill. 
Fred  Hatfield  uttered  a  shriek  of  despair  as  the 
mules  took  the  right  hand  road  and  struck  into 
the  bush  itself — a  narrow  and  treacherous  track 
where  the  limbs  of  the  trees  threatened  to  brush 
all  three  passengers  from  the  cart  at  any  instant. 

"Oh!  oh!  we're  done  for  now!  "  yelled  Fred. 
"They've  taken  the  road  to  Rattlesnake  Hill. 
Well  be  killed  as  sure  as  fate!  " 


CHAPTER  VIII 

FIRST  AT  SNOW  CAMP 

Fred  Hatfield's  fears  might  have  been  well- 
founded  had  the  mules  not  been  so  winded.  They 
had  run  at  least  four  miles  from  the  railroad  and 
even  with  the  fear  of  the  snarling  panther  behind 
them  they  could  not  continue  much  farther  at  this 
pace. 

But  over  this  rougher  and  narrower  road  the 
timber  cart  jounced  more  than  ever.  In  all  its 
life  the  panther  had  probably  never  received  such 
a  shaking-up.  The  mules  had  not  gone  far  on 
what  Fred  called  the  Rattlesnake  Hill  Road 
when,  with  an  ear-splitting  cry,  the  huge  cat 
leaped  out  from  the  flying  wagon  and  landed  in 
the  bush. 

"  We're  saved !  "  gasped  Ruth.  "  That  dread- 
ful beast  is  gone." 

Fred  immediately  tried  to  soothe  the  mules 
into  a  more  leisurely  pace;  but  nothing  but  fatigue 
would  bring  them  down.  Thoroughly  fright- 
ened,  they   kept  starting  and    running  without 

55 


56  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

cause,  and  there  was  no  chance  in  this  narrow 
road  to  turn  them. 

The  fact  that  it  ascended  the  side  of  the  hill. 
steeply  did  more  toward  abating  the  pace  of  the 
runaways  than  aught  else.  The  track  crept  along 
the  edge  of  several  abrupt  precipices,  too — not 
more  than  thirty  or  forty  feet  high,  but  enough 
to  wreck  the  wagon  and  kill  mules  and  passengers 
had  they  gone  over  the  brink. 

These  dangerous  places  in  the  winding  road 
were  what  had  so  frightened  young  Hatfield  at 
first.  He  knew  this  locality  well.  But  to  Ruth 
the  place  was  doubly  terrifying,  for  she  was  lost 
— completely  lost. 

"  Oh,  where  are  we  going?  What  will  be- 
come of  us?"  she  murmured,  still  obliged  to 
cling  with  both  hands  to  the  jumping,  rocking 
reach. 

The  mules  could  gallop  no  longer.  Fred 
yelled  at  them  "  Yea-a !  Yea-a !  "  at  the  top  of 
his  voice.  They  began  to  pay  some  attention — 
or  else  were  so  winded  that  they  would  have 
halted  of  their  own  volition.  And  as  the  cart 
ceased  its  thumping  and  rumbling  a  light  suddenly 
blazed  up  before  them,  shining  through  the  dusk, 
and  higher  up  the  hill. 

"  What  is  that?  A  house?  "  cried  Ruth,  seiz* 
ing  Fred  by  the  shoulder. 

Not  more  than  half  an  hour  ago  the  girl  from 


FIRST  AT   SNOW   CAMP  57 

the  Red  Mill  had  slipped  out  of  the  private  car 
at  the  Emoryville  Crossing,  in  pursuit  of  the  run- 
away youth;  now  they  were  deep  in  the  wilder- 
ness and  surrounded  by  such  dangers  as  Ruth  had 
never  dreamed  of  before. 

The  baying  of  a  hound  and  the  angry  barking 
of  another  dog  was  Ruth's  only  answer.  She 
turned  to  see  Fred  Hatfield  sliding  down  off  the 
cart. 

"  You  shaVt  leave  me !  "  cried  Ruth,  jumping 
down  after  him  and  seizing  the  runaway  desper- 
ately. "You  sha'n't  abandon  me  in  this  forest, 
away  from  everybody.  You're  a  cruel,  bad  boy, 
Fred  Hatfield;  but  youVe  just  got  to  be  decent 
to  me." 

"What  did  you  interfere  for,  anyway?"  he 
demanded,  snarling  like  a  cross  dog.  "  Lemme 
go!" 

But  if  Ruth  was  afraid  of  what  terrors  the  for- 
est might  hold,  and  of  her  general  situation,  she 
had  seen  enough  of  this  boy  to  know  that  he  was 
just  a  poor,  miserable  coward — he  aroused  no 
fear  in  her  heart. 

"  I'm  going  to  just  stick  to  you,  Freddie,"  she 
-assured  him.  She  was  quite  as  strong  as  he,  she 
knew.  "  You  are  going  home.  At  least,  you 
shall  go  back  to  Mr.  Cameron " 

Just  then  the  flare  of  light  ahead  broadened 
and  a  gruff  voice  shouted: 


58  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

"Hullo!  what's  wanted?  Down,  Tiger!  Be- 
have, Rose!  " 

The  dogs  instantly  stopped  their  clamor.  The 
light  came  through  the  open  door  and  the  glazed 
window  of  a  little  hut  perched  on  a  rock  over- 
looking the  road.  The  mules  had  halted  just  be- 
low this  eminence,  and  Ruth  saw  that  there  was 
a  winding  path  leading  up  to  the  door  of  the 
hovel.  Down  this  path  came  the  huge  figure  of 
a  man,  with  the  two  dogs  gamboling  about  him 
in  the  snow.  The  occupant  of  this  cabin  in  the 
wilderness  carried  a  rifle  in  one  hand. 

"  Hullo!"  he  said  again.  "  That's  Sim 
Rogers's  team — I  know  those  mules.  Are  you 
there,  Sim?     What's  happened  ye?" 

"Who  is  it?"  whispered  Ruth,  again,  still 
clinging  to  Fred's  jacket. 

"  It's — it's  the  Rattlesnake  Man,"  returned  the 
boy,  in  a  shaking  voice. 

"  Who  is  he?  "  asked  Ruth,  in  surprise. 

"  He  lives  here  alone  on  the  hill.  He's  a 
hermit.  They  say  he's  crazy.  And  I  guess  he 
is,"  added  Fred,  with  a  shudder. 

"  Why  do  you  think  he's  crazy?  " 

But  before  Fred  could  reply — if  he  intended 
to — the  hermit  reached  the  road.  He  was  an 
old  but  very  vigorous-looking  man,  burly  and 
stout,  with  a  great  mat  of  riotous  gray  hair  under 
his  fur  cap,  and  a  beard  of  the  same  color  that 


FIRST  AT   SNOW   CAMP  59 

reached  his  breast.  He  seemed  to  have  very 
good  eyes  indeed,  for  he  immediately  muttered: 

"  Ha !  Sim's  mules — been  running  like  the 
very  kildee !  All  of  a  sweat,  I  vow.  Two  young 
folks — ha!  Scared.  Runaway — ah!  What's 
that?" 

The  dogs  began  to  bay  again.  Far  behind  the 
boy  and  girl — down  the  hill  road — rose  the  eyrie 
scream  of  the  disappointed  panther. 

"That  cat-o'-mountain  chase  ye,  boy?"  the 
hermit  asked,  sharply. 

But  Fred  had  no  answer.  He  stood,  in  Ruth's 
sharp  clutch,  and  hung  his  head  without  a  word. 
The  girl  had  to  reply: 

"  I  never  was  so  scared.  The  beast  jumped 
right  on  the  cart  and  we  just  shook  him  off  down 
the  hill  yonder." 

"A  girl,"  said  the  hermit,  talking  to  himself, 
but  talking  aloud,  in  the  same  fashion  as  before. 
Without  doubt,  being  so  much  alone  in  these  wilds 
he  had  contracted  the  habit  of  talking  to  himself 
— or  to  his  dogs — or  to  whatever  creature 
chanced  to  be  his  company. 

"  A  girl.  Not  Sim's  gal.  Sim  ain't  got  noth- 
ing but  louts  of  boys.  Let  me  see.  What  boy 
is  this?" 

"He  is  Fred  Hatfield,"  said  Ruth,  simply. 
Fred  jumped  and  tried  to  pull  away  from  her; 
but  Ruth's  hold  was  not  to  be  so  easily  broken. 


6o  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

The  hermit,  however,  seemed  to  have  never  heard 
the  name  before.     He  only  said,  idly: 

"  Fred  Hatfield,  eh ?      You  his  sister?  » 

"  No,  sir.     I  am  Ruth  Fielding,"  she  replied. 

"  Ruth  Fielding?  Don't  know  her.  She's  not 
belongin'  around  here.  No.  Well,  how'd  you 
get  here?    And  with  Sim's  mules?  " 

Ruth  told  him  briefly,  but  without  bringing 
Fred  Hatfield's  trouble  into  the  story.  They  had 
got  aboard  the  timber  cart  at  the  crossing,  the 
mules  had  run  away,  the  panther  had  taken  a  ride 
with  them  and — here  they  were ! 

The  hermit  merely  nodded  in  acknowledgment 
of  the  tale.     His  questions  dealt  with  her  alone : 

"Where  do  you  belong?" 

"  The  party  I  was  with  are  bound  for  Snow 
Camp.  Do  you  know  where  that  is,  sir?  "  Ruth 
asked. 

"  Not  ten  miles  away.     Yes." 

"  They  will  be  worried " 

"  I  will  get  you  over  there  before  bedtime.  Go 
up  to  my  house  and  wait.  This  boy  and  I  will 
stable  the  mules  in  my  barn;  it's  just  along  the 
road  here.  Sim  will  follow  the  beasts  and  find 
them ;  but  he'll  be  some  time  in  getting  along.  He 
lives  along  this  road  himself — not  far,  not  far. 
Ah!" 

The  old  man  talked  mostly  as  though  he  spoke 


FIRST  AT  SNOW   CAMP  01 

to  himself.  He  seldom  more  than  glanced  at 
her,  his  eye  roving  everywhere  but  at  the  person 
to  whom  he  spoke.  Ruth  started  toward  the 
house  from  which  the  fire  and  lamplight  shone  so 
cordially.  The  dogs  stood  before  her — Tiger, 
the  big  hound,  and  Rose,  a  beautiful  Gordon 
setter. 

"  Let  her  alone,"  said  the  hermit  to  his  canine 
companions.     "  She's  all  right." 

The  dogs  seemed  to  agree  with  him  imme- 
diately. The  hound  sniffed  once  at  the  hem  of 
Ruth's  frock;  Rose  gambolled  about  her  and 
licked  her  hand.  Ruth  now  realized  how  cold  she 
was,  and  she  ran  quickly  up  to  the  open  door  of 
the  cabin. 

On  the  threshold  she  hesitated  a  moment.  A 
great  lamp  with  a  tin  shade,  hanging  from  the 
rafters,  illuminated  all  the  center  of  the  room. 
At  one  end  burned  a  hot  log  fire  on  the  hearth; 
but  the  two  further  corners  were  in  gloom.  Ruth 
had  said  she  had  never  seen  a  log  cabin,  and  it 
was  true.  This  one  seemed  to  her  to  be  a  very 
cozy  place  indeed,  even  if  it  was  the  habitation  of 
a  hermit. 

As  she  entered,  however,  she  found  that  there 
was  a  rather  suffocating,  unpleasant  odor  in  the 
place.  It  was  light,  yet  penetrating  enough  to  be 
distinguished  clearly.     In  one  of  the  darker  cor- 


62  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

tiers  was  what  appeared  to  be  a  big  green  chest, 
and  it  had  a  glazed  window  frame  for  a  cover. 
Something  rustled  there. 

The  dogs  followed  her  in  and  she  sat  down  in 
an  old-fashicned,  bent  hickory  chair  en  the  hearth 
— perhaps  the  hermit  himself  had  just  risen  from 
it,  for  there  was  a  sheepskin  lying  before  it  for 
a  mat  and  a  pair  of  huge  carpet  slippers  on  either 
side  of  the  sheepskin.  The  dogs  came  in  and  sat 
down  by  the  slippers,  just  where  Ruth  could  rest 
a  hand  on  either  head,  and  so  blinked  at  the  flames 
while  they  waited  for  the  return  of  the  hermit 
and  the  runaway  boy. 

So  she  sat  when  they  came  into  the  cabin, 
stamping  the  snow  from  their  shoes.  The  her- 
mit led  Fred  by  the  arm.  He  had  not  overlooked 
the  care  with  which  Ruth  had  retained  him  by  her 
side. 

"  So  you  want  to  go  over  to  Mr.  Parrish's  Snow 
Camp?  "  asked  the  old  man. 

"  It  belongs  to  Mr.  Cameron,  now."  said  Ruth. 
"I  know  that  there  is  a  telephone  there,  and  I  can 
get  word  to  Mr.  Cameron  and  Helen  and  Tom  at 
Scarboro  that  we  are  safe." 

"  I'm  not  going,"  said  Fred.     "  Fll  stay  here." 

"  You'll  go  along  with  Young  Miss,"  said  the 
hermit,  firmly.  "  Fll  git  ye  a  pannikin  of  tea 
and  a  bite.  Then  we'll  start.  We'll  go  'cross 
the  woods  on  snowshoes — 'twill  be  easier." 


FIRST  AT   SNOW   CAMP  63 

"  Oh,  can  I  do  it,  do  you  suppose?  "  cried  Ruth. 
"  I  never  wore  such  things  in  my  life." 

"  You'll  learn,"  said  the  hermit. 

He  bustled  about,  making  the  tea  and  warm- 
ing a  big  pancake  of  cornbread  which  he  put  into 
an  iron  dripping-pan  down  before  the  glowing 
coals  at  one  side.  While  they  waited  for  the 
water  to  bubble  for  the  tea  the  old  man  went  to 
the  big  chest,  and  began  to  talk  and  fondle  some- 
thing. Ruth  heard  the  rustling  again  and  turned 
around  to  look. 

"  Want  to  see  my  children,  Young  Miss? " 
asked  the  old  man,  whose  eyes  seemed  as  sharp 
as  needles. 

Ruth  arose  in  curiosity  and  approached. 
Within  a  yard  of  the  old  man  and  his  chest  she 
stopped  suddenly  with  a  gasp.  The  hermit 
stood  up  with  two  snakes  twining  about  his  hands 
and  wrists.  The  serpents  ran  their  tongues  out 
like  lightning,  and  their  beady  eyes  glowed  as 
though  living  fire  dwelt  in  their  heads.  Ruth 
was  frightened,  but  she  would  not  scream.  The 
hermit  handled  the  snakes  as  though  they  were 
as  harmless  as  kittens — as  probably  they  were, 
the  poison  sacks  having  been  removed. 

"  They  won't  hurt  you — harmless,  harmless," 
said  the  old  man,  caressingly.  "  There,  there, 
my  pretties!     Go  to  bed  again." 

He  lifted  the  glass  cover  of  the  chest  and 


64  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

dropped  them  into  its  interior.  There  was  a 
great  hissing  and  rustling.  The  hermit  stepped 
to  the  hanging  lamp  and  turned  the  shade  so  as  to 
send  the  radiance  of  it  into  that  corner.  Through 
the  pane  Ruth  saw  a  squirming  mass  of  scaly  bod- 
ies, mixed  up  with  an  old  quilt.  More  than 
one  tail,  with  rows  of  "  buttons  "  and  rattles  on 
it,  was  elevated,  and  one  angry  serpent  "  sprung 
his  rattle  "  sharply. 

"Hush,  hush,  my  dears!'*  said  the  hermit, 
soothingly.  "  Go  to  sleep  again  now.  My  chil- 
dren," he  said,  nodding  at  Ruth.  "  Pretty 
dears!" 

To  tell  the  truth,  the  girl  from  the  Red  Mill 
wanted  to  scream;  but  she  held  herself  down, 
clenching  her  hands,  and  say'ag  nothing.  The 
kettle  began  to  sing  and  she  was  glad  to  go  back 
to  the  chair  by  the  fire  and  afterward  to  sip  the 
tin  cup  of  hot  tea  that  their  host  gave  her,  and 
eat  with  good  appetite  a  square  of  the  crisp  corn- 
bread. 

Meanwhile,  the  hermit  took  from  the  walls 
three  pairs  of  great,  awkward-looking  snowshoes 
and  tightened  the  lacings  and  fitted  thongs  to 
them.  The  pair  he  selected  for  Ruth  looked  to 
the  girl  to  be  so  big  that  she  never  could  take  a 
step  in  them ;  but  he  seemed  to  expect  her  to  try. 

They  went  out  of  the  cabin  as  the  moon  was 
rising.      It  came  up   as   red   and  fiery   as   the 


FIRST   AT   SNOW   CAMP  65 

sun  had  gone  down.  Long  shadows  of  the  tall 
trees  were  flung  across  the  snow.  The  hermit 
commanded  Rose,  the  setter,  to  guard  the  hut, 
while  he  allowed  the  hound  to  follow  at  heel.  He 
carried  his  rifle,  and  Ruth  was  glad  of  this. 

11  Haven't  heard  a  cat-o'-mountain  around  here 
this  winter,"  he  said,  as  they  started  up  the  hill. 
"  Didn't  hear  nor  see  one  at  all  last  winter. 
Neighbors  will  have  to  get  up  a  hunt  for  this  one 
that  troubled  you,  Young  Miss,  'fore  it  does  more 
damage." 

At  the  top  of  the  ascent  they  stopped  and  the 
old  man  put  on  Ruth's  snowshoes  for  her.  Fred, 
always  without  a  word  and  looking  mighty  sullen 
(but  evidently  afraid  of  the  rattlesnake  man) 
tied  his  own  in  place  and  the  hermit  slipped  into 
his  and  they  each  gave  Ruth  a  hand. 

She  stood  up  and  found  that  her  weight  made 
little  or  no  impression  upon  the  well-packed  snow. 
There  was  no  wind  and,  although  the  air  was  very 
keen  (the  thermometer  probably  being  almost  to 
the  zero  mark)  it  was  easy  for  her  to  move  over 
the  drifts.  With  some  little  instruction  from  the 
rattlesnake  man,  and  after  several  tumbles — 
which  were  of  little  moment  because  he  and  Fred 
held  her  up — Ruth  was  able  to  put  one  foot  be- 
fore the  other  and  shuffle  over  the  snow  at  a 
fairly  good  pace. 

The  moonlight  made   the  unbroken  track  as 


66  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

plain  as  noonday.  To  Ruth  it  seemed  almost  im- 
possible that  the  hermit  could  find  his  way 
through  a  forest  which  showed  no  mark  of  any 
farmer  traveler;  but  he  went  on  as  though  it  was 
a  turnpike. 

Two  hours  and  a  half  were  they  on  the  way, 
and  Ruth  had  begun  to  be  both  tired  and  cold 
when  they  crossed  a  road  on  which  there  were  tele- 
graph, or  telephone  poles  and  then — a  little 
farther  into  the  Big  Woods — they  struck  a  well- 
defined  private  track  over  which  sleds  had  re- 
cently traveled. 

"  You  say  some  of  your  party  and  the  baggage 
were  coming  over  to-night,"  said  the  hermit  to 
Ruth.  "  They  have  been  along.  This  is  the 
road  to  Snow  Camp — and  there  is  the  light  from 
the  windows!" 

Ruth  saw  several  points  of  light  directly  ahead. 
They  quickly  reached  a  good-sized  clearing,  in 
the  middle  of  which  stood  a  two-story  log  cabin, 
with  a  balcony  built  all  around  it  at  the  height  of 
the  second  floor.  Sleigh  bells  jingled  as  the 
horses  stamped  in  the  yard.  The  heavy  sledges 
with  the  luggage  and  the  serving  people  had  just 
arrived.  Ruth  Fielding  was  the  first  of  the  pleas- 
ure party  to  arrive  at  Snow  Camp. 


CHAPTER  IX 


"  LONG  JERRY  "  TODD 


Some  dogs  began  barking,  and  the  hermit's 
hound  replied  by  baying  with  his  nose  in  the  air — 
a  sound  to  make  anybody  shiver!  The  Rattle- 
snake Man  gave  a  lusty  shout,  and  a  door  opened, 
flooding  the  porch  of  the  big  log  cabin  with  lamp- 
light. 

"  Hello !  "  came  the  answering  shout  across 
the  clearing,  and  a  very  tall  man — as  thin  as  a 
lath — strode  down  from  the  porch  and  ap- 
proached them,  after  sending  back  the  dogs — all 
but  one.  This  big  creature  could  not  be  stayed 
in  his  impetuous  rush  over  the  snow  and  the  next 
instant  he  sprang  up  and  put  both  his  forepaws  on 
Ruth's  shoulders. 

"  Oh,  Reno !  "  she  cried,  fondling  Tom  Cam- 
eron's big  mastiff,  that  had  come  all  the  way  from 
Cheslow  with  them  in  the  baggage  car.  u  You 
know  me;  don't  you?" 

"  Guess  that  proves  her  right  to  be  here,"  said 
the  hermit,  more  to  himself  than  to  the  surprised 

67 


68  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

tall  man,  who  was  the  guide  and  keeper  in  charge 
of  Snow  Camp.  "  Your  boss  lose  one  of  his 
party  off  the  train,  Long  Jerry  Todd?  " 

"  So  I  hear.  Is  this  here  the  gal?  "  cried  the 
other,  in  immense  surprise.     "  I  swanny!  M 

"Yep.  She's  all  right.  I'll  go  back,"  said 
the  rattlesnake  man,  without  further  ado,  turning 
in  his  tracks. 

"  Oh,  sir !  "  cried  Ruth.  "  I'm  so  much  obliged 
to  you." 

But  the  hermit  slipped  away  on  his  snowshoes 
and  in  less  than  a  minute  was  out  of  sight.  Then 
Ruth  looked  around  suddenly  for  Fred  Hatfield. 
The  runaway  had  disappeared. 

"Where's  that  boy?"  she  cried. 

"  What  boy?  "  returned  Long  Jerry,  curiously. 
"  Didn't  see  no  boy  here." 

"  Why,  the  boy  that  came  here  with  us.  He 
left  the  train  at  Emoryville  when  I  did — you  must 
have  seen  him." 

"  I  never  did,"  declared  the  guide.  "  He  must 
have  slipped  away.  Maybe  he's  gone  into  the 
house.  You'd  better  come  in  yourself.  The 
women  folks  will  'tend  to  you.  Why,  Miss, 
you're  dead  beat!  " 

Indeed  Ruth  was.  She  could  scarcely  stumble 
with  the  guide's  help  to  the  porch.  She  had 
kicked  off  the  snowshoes  and  the  hermit  had  taken 
them  with  him.     Had  it  not  been  for  the  hermit 


"LONG  JERRY"  TODD  69 

and  Fred  Hatfield,  Ruth  Fielding  would  never 
have  been  able  to  travel  the  distance  from  the 
hermit's  cabin  to  Snow  Camp.  And  the  terrible 
shaking  up  she  had  received  on  the  timber  cart 
made  her  feel  like  singing  old  Aunt  Alvirah's 
tune  of  "  Oh,  my  back  and  oh,  my  bones!  " 

There  were  two  maids  whom  Mr.  Cameron 
had  brought  along  and  they,  with  two  men,  had 
come  over  from  Scarboro  (a  ride  of  eight  miles, 
or  so)  with  the  luggage.  They  welcomed  Ruth 
and  set  her  down  before  a  great  fire  in  the  dining 
room,  and  one  of  them  removed  the  girl's  shoes 
so  that  her  feet  might  be  dried  and  warmed, 
while  the  other  hurried  to  make  some  supper  for 
the  wanderer. 

But  as  soon  as  Ruth  got  her  slippers  on,  and  re- 
covered a  little  from  the  exhaustion  of  her  trip, 
two  things  troubled  her  vastly.  She  inquired  for 
the  boy  again,  and  learned  that  he  had  not  been 
seen  about  the  camp.  When  she  and  the  hermit 
had  entered  the  clearing,  Fred  had  undoubtedly 
taken  the  opportunity  to  slip  away. 

"And  in  the  night — and  it  so  cold,  too," 
thought  Ruth.     u  What  will  Mr.  Cameron  say?  " 

That  question  brought  her  to  the  second  of 
her  troubles.  Her  friends  would  worry  about 
her  all  night  if  she  did  not  find  some  way  of  allay- 
ing their  anxiety. 

"Oh,     Mary!"     she     said     to     the     maid. 


jo  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

"Where's  the  telephone?  Tom  said  there  was 
telephone  connection  here." 

"  So  there  is,  Miss,"  returned  the  maid.  "  And 
somebody  had  better  tell  Mrs.  Murchiston  that 
you're  safe.  They're  all  as  worried  as  they  can 
be  about  you,  for  the  folks  at  that  store  by  the 
railroad — where  the  train  stopped — when  they 
was  called  up  as  soon  as  the  train  reached  Scar- 
boro,  declared  that  you  had  got  run  away  with 
by  a  team  of  mules." 

"  Which  was  most  certainly  true,"  admitted 
Ruth.  "  I  never  had  such  a  dreadful  time  in  all 
my  life.  Run  away  with  by  mules,  and  fright- 
ened to  death  by  a  great  big  catamount " 

Mary  squealed  and  covered  her  ears.  "  Don't 
tell  me !  "  she  gasped.  "  Sure,  Miss,  there  do  bes 
bears,  an'  panthers,  an'  wild-cats,  an' — an'  I 
dunno  what-all  in  these  woods.  Sure,  me  and 
Janey  will  never  go  out  of  this  house  whilst  we 
stay.     'Tain't  civilized  hereabout." 

Ruth  laughed  rather  ruefully.  "  I  guess 
you're  right,  Mary,"  she  said.  "  It  doesn't 
seem  to  be  very  civilized  here  in  the  backwoods — 
and  such  queer  people  live  here,  too.  But  now! 
let  me  telephone." 

The  maid  showed  her  where  it  was  and  Ruth 
called  up  Scarboro  and  got  the  hotel  where  the 
Cameron  party  was  stopping.  Almost  imme- 
diately she  heard  Mr.  Cameron's  voice. 


"LONG  JERRY  "   TODD  71 

"Hullo!  Snow  Camp?  What's  wanted?'' 
he  asked,  in  a  nervous,  jerky  way. 

"  This  is  me,  Mr.  Cameron — Ruth,  you  know. 
I  am  all  right  at  Snow  Camp." 

11  Well !  That's  fine !  Thank  goodness  you're 
safe!"  ejaculated  the  merchant,  in  an  entirely 
different  tone.  "  Why,  Ruth,  I  was  just  about 
sending  a  party  out  from  the  store  at  Emoryville 
to  beat  up  the  woods  for  you.  They  say  there 
is  a  big  panther  in  that  district." 

"  Oh,  I  know  it.  The  beast  frightened  us 
most  to  death " 

"  Who  was  with  you?  "  interrupted  Mr.  Cam- 
eron. 

"Why,  that  boy!  He  jumped  off  the  train 
and  I  followed  to  stop  him.  Now  he's  run  away 
again,  sir." 

"Oh,  the  boy  calling  himself  Fred  Hatfield?" 
ejaculated  Mr.  Cameron.     "  He's  left  you?  " 

"He  came  here  to  Snow  Camp  and  then  dis- 
appeared.    I  am  sorry " 

"  You're  a  good  little  girl,  Ruth.  I  wanted  to 
bring  him  up  here — and  there  are  people  who 
would  be  glad  to  know  who  he  really  is." 

"But  don't  you  know?  Isn't  his  name  Fred 
Hatfield?"  questioned  Ruth,  in  surprise. 

"  That  can't  be.  Fred  Hatfield  was  shot  here 
in  the  woods  more  than  a  month  ago.  It  was 
soon  after  the  deer  season  opened,  they  tell  me, 


72  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

and  it  is  supposed  to  have  been  an  accident. 
Young  'Lias  Hatfield,  half-brother  of  the  real 
Fred,  is  in  jail  here,  held  for  shooting  his 
brother.  Who  the  boy  was  whom  we  found  and 
brought  from  the  Red  Mill,  seems  to  be  a  mys- 
tery." 

"  Oh !  "  cried  Ruth,  but  before  she  could  say 
more,  Mr.  Cameron  went  on: 

"  We'll  all  be  over  in  the  morning.  I  hope 
you  have  not  taken  cold,  or  overtaxed  your 
strength.  I  must  go  and  tell  Helen.  She  has 
been  frightened  half  to  death  about  you.  Good- 
night." 

He  hung  up  the  receiver,  leaving  Ruth  in  rather 
a  disturbed  state  of  mind.  The  newspaper  clip- 
ping that  had  dropped  out  of  the  old  wallet  the 
strange  boy  had  carried,  was  the  account  of  the 
shooting  affair.  Mention  was  made  in  it  about 
the  very  frequent  mistakes  made  in  the  hunting 
season — mistakes  which  often  end  in  the  death  of 
one  hunter  by  the  hand  of  another. 

It  said  that  'Lias  Hatfield  and  his  younger 
brother,  Fred,  had  had  a  quarrel  and  then  gone 
hunting,  each  taking  a  different  direction.  The 
younger  boy  had  ensconced  himself  just  under 
the  brink  of  a  steep  bank  at  the  bottom  of  which 
was  Rolling  River,  a  swift  and  deep  stream.  His 
brother's  story  was  that  he  had  come  up  facing 
this  place,  having  started  a  young  buck  not  half  a 


"LONG  JERRY"   TODD  73 

mile  away.  He  thought  he  heard  the  buck  stamp- 
ing, and  blowing,  and  then  saw  what  he  thought 
was  the  animal  behind  a  fringe  of  bushes  at  the 
top  of  this  steep  river  bank. 

The  hunter  blazed  away,  and  heard  a  dreadful 
scream,  a  rolling  and  thrashing  in  the  brush,  and 
a  splash  in  the  river.  He  ran  forward  and  found 
his  brother's  old  gun  and  tippet.  There  was  blood 
on  the  bushes.  The  supposition  was  that  Fred 
Hatfield  had  been  shot  and  had  rolled  into  the 
swift-flowing  river.  'Lias  had  given  himself  up 
to  the  authorities  and  there  seemed  some  doubt 
in  the  minds  of  the  people  of  Scarboro  as  to 
whether  the  shooting  had  been  an  accident. 

"  If  there  was  no  body  found,"  thought  Ruth, 
all  the  time  she  was  eating  the  supper  that  Mary 
brought  her,  "  how  do  they  know  Fred  Hatfield 
is  really  dead?  And  if  he  is  dead,  who  is  the  boy 
who  is  traveling  about  the  country  using  Fred 
Hatfield's  name  and  carrying  Mr.  Hatfield's  old 
wallet?  I  guess  Fred  has  run  away,  instead  of 
being  killed,  and  is  staying  away  because  he  hates 
his  brother  'Lias,  and  wishes  him  to  get  into 
trouble  about  the  shooting.  If  that's  so,  isn't  he 
just  the  meanest  boy  that  ever  was?  " 

Long  Jerry  Todd  came  in  with  a  huge  armful 
of  wood  for  the  fire,  and  Ruth  determined  to 
pump  him  about  the  accident.  The  tall  man 
knew  all  about  it,  and  was  willing  enough  to  talk.. 


74  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

He  sat  down  beside  the  fire  and  answered  Ruth's 
questions  most  cheerfully. 

"  Ya-as,  I  knowed  old  man  Hatfield,"  he  said. 
"  He's  been  dead  goin'  on  ten  year.  That  Fred 
wasn't  good  to  his  mother.  His  half-brothers — 
children  of  Old  Man  Hatfield's  fust  wife — is 
nicer  to  their  marm  than  Fred  was.  Oh,  ya-as! 
he  was  shot  by  'Lias,  all  right.  I  dunno  as  'Lias 
meant  to  do  it.  Hope  not.  But  they  found 
Fred's  body  in  the  river  t'other  day,  and  so  they 
arrested  'Lias." 

But  Long  Jerry  hadn't  seen  any  sign  of  the 
boy  that  had  been  with  Ruth  and  the  hermit 
when  they  arrived  at  Snow  Camp.  Ruth  did  not 
like  to  discuss  the  mystery  with  him  any  more; 
for  it  was  a  mystery  now,  that  was  sure.  Fred 
Hatfield's  body  had  been  found  in  the  river,  yet 
a  boy  was  traveling  about  the  country  bearing 
Fred  Hatfield's  name. 

The  guide  finally  unfolded  himself  and  rose 
slowly  to  his  full  height,  preparatory  to  going 
back  to  the  kitchen  regions.  He  was  nearly  seven 
feet  tall,  and  painfully  thin.  He  grinned  down 
upon  Ruth  Fielding  as  she  gazed  in  wonder  at  his 
proportions. 

"I'm  some  long;  ain't  I,  Miss?"  he  chuckled. 
"  But  I  warn't  no  taller  than  av'rage  folks  when 
I  was  a  boy.  You  hear  of  some  folks  gettin, 
stunted  by  sickness,  or  fright,  or  the  li£e.     Wal, 


"LONG  JERRY"  TODD  ;5 

I  reckon  /  got  stretched  out  longer'n  common  by 
fright.     Want  to  hear  about  it?" 

He  was  so  jolly  and  funny  that  Ruth  was  glad 
to  hear  him  talk  and  she  encouraged  him  to  go  on. 
So  Jerry  sat  down  again  and  began  his  story. 


CHAPTER  X 

BEARS — AND  OTHER  THINGS 

"  Ye  see,"drawled  Jerry,  "  my  marm  was  alive 
in  them  days — bless  her  heart!  Dad  was  killed 
on  the  boom  down  Rolling  River  when  I  was  a  lit- 
tle shaver;  but  marm  hung  on  till  I  got  growed. 
Ya-as !  I  mean  till  I  got  clean  through  growin* 
and  that  was  long  after  I  voted  fust  time,"  and 
he  chuckled  and  wagged  his  head. 

"  Wal,  mebbe  I  was  sixteen;  mebbe  seventeen. 
Boys  up  here  in  the  woods  have  to  cut  their  own 
vittles  pretty  airly.  I  was  doin'  a  man's  labor 
when  I  was  'leven.  Ya-as,  Miss!  Had  to  work 
for  me  an'  marm. 

"  And  marm  worked,  too.  One  day  I  started 
for  Drownville  with  a  big  bundle  of  aperns  marm 
had  sewed  for  Mis'  Juneberry  that  kep'  store  at 
Drownville.  She  got  two  bits  a  dozen  for  raakin' 
them  aperns,  I  remember.  Wal,  it  was  a  wilder 
country  then  than  it  is  now,  and  I  never  see  a  soul, 
nor  heard  the  sound  of  an  axe  in  walking  four 
miles.  Just  at  the  end  o'  them  four  miles,"  con- 
tinued Long  Jerry,  his  eyes  twinkling,  "  there  was 

76 


BEARS— AND  OTHER  THINGS 


77 


a  turn  in  the  road.  I  swung  around  it — I  was 
travelin'  at  a  good  clip — and  come  facin'  up  an 
old  she  b'ar  which  riz  up  on  her  hind  laigs  an' 
said:  '  How-d'-do,  Jerry  Todd!'  jest  as  plain 
as  ever  a  bear  spoke  in  its  e-tar-nal  life ! 

"  Why,"  said  Long  Jerry,  almost  choking  with 
his  own  laughter,  "  by  the  smile  on  thet  thar  b'ar's 
face  and  the  way  she  spread  her  arms  wide  to  re- 
ceive me,  it  was  plain  enough  how  glad  she  was 


ter  see  me." 


"  I  should  think  you'd  have  been  scared  to 
death !  "  gasped  Ruth,  looking  down  at  him. 

"Wal,  I  calculate  I  was  some  narvous.  I 
was  more  narvous  in  them  days  than  I  be  now. 
Hadn't  seen  so  much  of  the  world.  And  sure 
hadn't  seen  so  much  o'  b'ars,"  cackled  Jerry. 
11  Not  bein'  used  to  b'ar  sassiety  I  natcherly 
balked  when  that  oV  she  b'ar  appeared  so  lovin'. 
I  had  pretty  nigh  walked  right  into  her  arms  and 
there  wasn't  much  chance  to  make  any  particular 
preparations.  Fact  was,  I  didn't  have  nothin' 
with  me  more  dangerous  than  a  broken  jack- 
knife,  and  I  don't  know  how  it  might  strike  you, 
Miss,  but  to  me  that  didn't  seem  to  be  no  imple- 
ment with  which  to  make  a  b'ar's  acquaintance." 

"  I  should  think  not !  "  giggled  Ruth.  "  What 
did  you  do?  " 

"  Wal,  first  of  all  I  give  her  marm's  bundle — 
ya-as    I  did!      I  pitched  that  there  bundle  of 


y8  RUTH  FIELDING  AT  SNOW  CAMP 

aperns  right  at  her,  and  the  way  she  growled  an* 
tore  at  'em  was  a  caution,  now  I  tell  ye!  I  seen 
at  once  what  she'd  do  to  me  if  she  got  me,  so  I 
left  them  parts,  an'  left  'em  quick!  I  started  off 
through  the  woods,  hittin'  only  the  high  spots, 
and  fancied  I  could  beat  the  old  gal  runnin'.  But 
not  on  your  tin-type!  No,  sir-ree!  The  old 
gal  jest  give  a  roar,  come  down  on  all  four  feet, 
and  started  after  me  at  a  pace  that  set  me 
a-thinkin'  of  my  sins. 

"  Jest  as  sure  as  you  live,  if  I'd  kept  on  running 
she'd  had  me  within  thirty  yards.  An'  I  knew 
if  I  climbed  a  big  tree  she'd  race  me  to  the  top 
of  it  and  get  me,  too.  Ye  see,  a  small-round 
tree  was  my  only  chance.  A  b'ar  climbs  by 
huggin'  their  paws  around  the  trunk,  and  it  takes 
one  of  right  smart  size  to  suit  them  for  climbin\ 

"  I  see  my  tree  all  right,  and  I  went  for  it. 
Missus  B'ar,  she  come  cavortin'  an*  growlin' 
along,  and  it  did  seem  to  me  as  though  she'd  have 
a  chunk  out  o'  me  afore  I  could  climb  out  o' 
reach.  It  was  jest  about  then,  I  reckon,"  pur- 
sued Long  Jerry,  chuckling  again,  "  when  I  be- 
lieve I  began  to  grow  tall ! 

"  I  stretched  my  arms  up  as  fur  as  I  could,  an' 
the  way  I  shinnied  up  that  sapling  was  a  caution 
to  cats,  now  I  tell  ye !  She  riz  up  the  minute  she 
got  to  the  tree  and  tried  to  scrape  me  off  with 
both  paws.     She  missed  me  by  half  a  fraction  of 


BEARS— AND   OTHER  THINGS  79 

an  infinitessimal  part  of  an  inch — that's  a  good 
word,  that  '  infinitessimal';  ain't  it,  Miss?  I  got 
it  off  of  a  college  perfesser  what  come  up  here, 
and  he  said  he  got  it  straight-away  out  of  the  dic- 
tionary." 

"  It's  a  good  word,  Mr.  Todd,"  laughed  Ruth, 
highly  delighted  at  the  man  and  his  story. 

"  Wall  "  chuckled  Jerry,  "  we'll  say  she  missed 
me.  I  was  so  scar't  that  I  didn't  know  then 
whether  she  had  missed  me  or  was  chawin'  of  me. 
I  felt  I  was  pretty  numb  like  below  my  waist. 
And  how  I  did  stretch  up  that  tree!  No  won- 
der I  growed  tall  after  that  day,"  said  Jerry, 
shaking  his  head.  "  I  stretched  ev'ry  muscle  in 
my  carcass,  Miss — I  surely  did! 

"  There  was  that  ol'  she  b'ar,  on  her  hind  legs 
and  a-roarin'  at  me  like  the  Mr.  Bashan's  Bull 
that  they  tell  about,  and  scratchin'  the  bark  off'n 
that  tree  in  great  strips.  She  cleaned  the  pole,  as 
far  up  as  she  could  reach,  as  clean  as  a  bald  man's 
head.  She  jumped  as  far  as  she  could,  gnashed 
her  teeth,  and  tried  her  best  to  climb  that  sap- 
ling. Every  time  she  made  a  jump,  or  howled, 
I  tried  to  climb  higher.  An',  Miss,  that  was  the 
time  I  got  stretched  out  so  tall,  for  sure. 

"  The  bear,  with  wide-open  mouth,  kept  on 
a-jumpin'  an'  ev'ry  time  she  jumped  I  dumb  a 
little  higher.  I  was  so  busy  lookin'  down  at  her 
that  I  never  looked  up  to  see  how  fur  I  was 


So  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

gettin'  toward  the  top,  so,  all  of  a  suddent-like, 
the  tree  top  begun  to  bend  over  with  me  an' 
sumpin'     snapped.  'Twarn't     my     galluses, 

neither !  "  crowed  Long  Jerry,  very  much  de- 
lighted by  his  own  tale.  "  I  knowed  that,  all 
right.  Sna-a-ap !  she  went  again,  and  I  begun  to 
go  down. 

"  I  swanny!  but  that  was  a  warm  time  for  me, 
Miss — it  sure  was.  There  was  that  oV  she  b'ar 
with  her  mouth  as  wide  open  as  a  church  door — 
or,  so  it  looked  to  Jerry  Todd.  They  say  a  feller 
that's  drowndin'  thinks  over  all  his  hull  endurin' 
life  when  he's  goin'  down.  I  believe  it.  Sure  I 
do.  'Twarn't  twenty  feet  from  the  top  o'  that 
tree  to  the  ground,  but  I  even  remembered  how 
I  stole  my  sister  Jane's  rag  baby  when  I  couldn't 
more'n  toddle  around  marm's  shanty — that's 
right! — an'  berried  of  it  in  the  hog-pen.  Every 
sin  that  was  registered  to  my  account  come  up  be- 
fore me  as  plain  as  the  wart  on  Jim  Biggie's 
nose!  " 

"Oh,  Mr.  Todd!"  cried  Ruth.  "Falling 
right  on  that  awful  bear?" 

"  That's  what  I  was  doin\  Miss — and  it  didn't 
take  me  long  to  do  it,  neither,  I  reckon.  Mebbe 
the  b'ar  warn't  no  more  ready  to  receive  me  than 
I  was  to  drap  down  on  her.  I  heard  her  give  a 
startled  whuff,  and  she  come  on  all  four  paws. 
The  next  thing  I  done  was  to  land  square  on  her 


BEARS— AND  OTHER  THINGS  8l 

back — I  swanny!  that  was  a  crack.  Purty  nigh 
drove  my  spine  up  through  the  top  of  my  head,  it 
did.  And  the  oV  b'ar  must  ha'  been  mighty  sorry 
arterwards  that  she  was  right  there  to  receive  me. 
She  give  a  most  awful  grunt,  shook  me  off  onto 
the  ground  and  kited  out  o'  that  as  though  she'd 
been  sent  for  iti  a  hurry!  I  swanny!  I  never  did 
see  a  b'ar  run  so  fast,"  and  Long  Jerry  burst  into 
an  uproarious  laugh. 

"  But  that,  I  reckon,  is  the  time  I  got  so 
stretched  out  an'  begun  to  grow  so  tall,  Miss,"  he 
added.  "  Stretchin'  an'  strainm'  to  git  away  from 
that  oV  she  b'ar  was  what  done  it." 

Ruth  was  delighted  with  the  guide;  but  she  was 
very  tired,  too,  and  when  the  maids  came  in  she 
was  only  too  glad  to  fall  in  with  the  suggestion  of 
bed.  She  was  put  to  sleep  in  a  great,  plainly  fur- 
nished room,  where  there  were  three  other  beds 
— a  regular  dormitory.  It  was  like  one  of  the 
Prime  sleeping  rooms  at  Briarwood  Hall. 

And  how  Ruth  did  sleep  that  night  after  her 
adventurous  day!  The  sun  shone  broadly  on  the 
clearing  about  the  camp  when  she  first  opened  her 
eyes.  Mary  put  her  head  in  at  the  door  and 
said: 

"  Your  breakfast  will  be  spoilt,  Miss  Ruth,  or 
I  wouldn't  disturb  you.  All  the  men's  ate  long 
ago  and  Janey's  fussin'  in  the  kitchen.  Besides, 
the  folks  will  be  over  from  Scarboro  in  an  hour. 


82  RUTH   FIELDING   AT    SNOW   CAMP 

Mr.  Cameron  just  telephoned  and  asked  how  you 
were." 

"  Oh,  I  feel  fine !  "  cried  the  girl  from  the  Red 
Mill,  joyfully. 

But  when  she  hopped  out  of  bed  she  found  her- 
self dreadfully  stiff  and  lame;  the  jouncing  she 
had  received  while  riding  with  the  boy  calling 
himself  Fred  Hatfield,  and  the  catamount,  on  the 
timber  cart,  and  later  her  first  long  walk  on  snow- 
shoes,  had  together  strained  her  muscles  and 
lamed  her  limbs  to  a  degree.  Old  Aunt  Alvirah's 
oft-repeated  phrase  fitted  her  condition,  and  she 
grimly  repeated  it: 

"  Oh,  my  back  and  oh,  my  bones!  " 

But  the  prospect  of  the  other  girls,  coming — 
and  Tom  and  his  friends,  too — and  the  fun  in 
store  for  them  all  at  Snow  Camp,  soon  made  Ruth 
Fielding  forget  small  troubles.  Besides,  the 
muscles  of  youth  are  elastic  and  the  weariness 
soon  went  out  of  her  bones.  Before  the  party 
arrived  from  Scarboro  she  had  opportunity  of 
going  all  about  the  great  log  lodge,  and  getting 
acquainted  with  all  it  held  and  all  that  surrounded 
it. 

The  great  hall  on  the  lower  floor  was  arranged 
so  as  to  have  a  broad  open  fireplace  at  either  end. 
These  fires  were  kept  burning  day  and  night 
and  the  great  heaps  of  glowing  logs  made  the 
hall,  and  most  of  the  upper  rooms,  very  comforta- 


BEARS— AND   OTHER  THINGS  83 

ble  indeed.  The  walls  of  this  hall  were  hung  with 
snowshoes,  Canadian  toboggans — so  light,  appar- 
ently, that  they  would  not  hold  one  man,  let  alone 
four,  but  very,  very  strongly  built — guns,  Indian 
bows  and  sheaf  of  arrows,  fish-spears,  and  a  con- 
glomeration of  hunting  gear  for  much  of  which 
Ruth  Fielding  did  not  even  know  the  names,  let 
alone  their  uses. 

Outside  the  snow  had  been  cleared  away  im- 
mediately around  the  great  log  house  and  a  wide 
path  was  cut  through  the  drifts  down  to  a  small 
lake,  or  pond.  In  coming  from  Rattlesnake  Hill 
the  night  before  with  the  old  hermit,  and  the  boy 
who  called  himself  Fred  Hatfield,  they  had  come 
down  a  long  incline  in  sight  of  the  camp.  Now, 
Ruth  saw  that  a  course  had  been  made  level  upon 
that  hillside,  banked  up  on  either  side  with  dykes 
of  snow,  and  water  poured  over  the  whole  to 
make  a  perfect  slide.  There  was  a  starting  plat- 
form at  the  top  and  the  course  was  more  than 
half  a  mile  in  length,  Long  Jerry  told  her. 

But  when  she  had  seen  all  these  things  sleigh 
bells  were  heard  and  Ruth  ran  out  to  welcome  her 
friends. 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE  FROST  GAMES 

The  big  sleigh  in  which  were  Helen  and  the 
other  girls  swept  into  the  clearing  in  advance  and 
Ruth's  chum  led  the  chorus  addressed  vocifer- 
ously to  the  girl  from  Red  Mill. 

"  Oh,  Ruthie !  " 

"  The  lost  is  found!" 

"And  she  got  here  first — wasn't  that  cute  of 
her?" 

"  Oh,  do  tell  us  all  about  it,  Ruth,"  cried 
Lluella  Fairfax. 

"However  could  you  scare  us  so,  Ruthie?" 
cried  Jennie  Stone,  the  heavyweight.  "I  was  so 
worried  I  was  actually  sick." 

"  And  that  is  positively  l  no  error,' "  laughed 
Belle  Tingley.  "  For  once  Heavy  was  so  troubled 
that  she  couldn't  eat." 

Helen  was  out  of  the  sleigh  at  once  and  hugged 
Ruth  hard.  "  You  blessed  girl !  "  she  cried.  "  I 
was  so  afraid  something  dreadful  had  happened 
to  you." 

84 


THE   FROST   GAMES  85 

11  And  what  became  of  that  horrid  boy  Mr. 
Cameron  tried  to  take  to  Scarboro?"  demanded 
Madge  Steele. 

The  boys  piled  out  of  their  sledge  before  Ruth 
could  answer  these  questions,  and  she  was  unable 
to  give  a  very  vivid  explanation  of  all  that  had 
happened  to  her  since  leaving  the  train,  until  the 
whole  party  was  gathered  before  one  of  the  open 
fires  in  the  hall,  waiting  for  dinner.  Before  this 
hour  came,  however,  and  while  the  rest  of  the 
young  folks  were  getting  acquainted  with  the  pos- 
sibilities of  Snow  Camp,  Ruth  had  a  serious  talk 
with  Mr.  Cameron  regarding  the  mysterious  boy 
who  had  disappeared  on  the  verge  of  the  Snow 
Camp  reservation. 

"  I  don't  know  how  he  escaped  us.  He  sped 
away  through  the  woods  with  the  old  hermit's 
snowshoes — I  am  sure  of  that.  And  that  old 
Rattlesnake  Man  didn't  seem  to  be  bothered  at  all 
by  his  loss,"  Ruth  said. 

11  Perhaps  that  hermit  knows  something  about 
the  fellow.  We'll  look  into  that,"  said  the  mer- 
chant, gravely.  "  However,  Ruth,  you  did  what 
you  thought  was  right.  It  was  reckless.  I  can- 
not commend  you  for  leaving  the  train,  child. 
Something  dreadful  might  have  happened  to 
you." 

"  I  thought  something  dreadful  did  happen  to 
me,"  said  Ruth,  with  a  shudder,   "when  those 


86  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

mules  ran  away  and  that  catamount  leaped  up  on 
the  timber  cart." 

"  I  believe  you !  And  your  going  to  the  cabin 
of  that  rattlesnake  catcher.  They  say  he  is  mad, 
and  he  handles  the  serpents  just  as  though  they 
were  white  mice.  The  people  hereabout  are 
afraid  of  him,"  said  Mr.  Cameron,  earnestly. 

"  He  was  as  kind  as  he  could  be  to  me,"  said 
Ruth,  shaking  her  head.  "  I  don't  think  I  should 
ever  be  afraid  of  him.  His  eyes  are  kind.  But 
the  snakes — oh!  they  did  frighten  me  dread- 
fully." 

"  From  what  I  hear  of  this  young  man,  'Lias 
Hatfield,  who  is  in  jail  at  Scarboro,  he  is  a  decent 
lad  and  has  worked  hard  for  his  stepmother.  The 
half-brother  he  shot  was  about  the  age  of  this  boy 
we  found  down  home.  But  his  body  was  recov- 
ered from  the  river  only  the  other  day  when  they 
arrested  'Lias.  I  shall  make  it  my  business  to  see 
the  Hatiields  personally  and  learn,  if  possible, 
how  a  stranger  like  that  boy  who  came  here  with 
you,  Ruth,  could  have  obtained  Mr.  Hatfield's 
old  wallet." 

"  He  had  some  deep  interest  in  the  mystery  of 
this  shooting,"  declared  Ruth,  and  she  told  the 
merchant  of  the  newspaper  clipping  that  had 
dropped  out  of  the  old  wallet  when  she  had  under- 
taken to  dry  the  boy's  clothing  at  the  Red  Mill. 

Meanwhile,  the  other  young  folks  were  highly 


THE   FROST   GAMES  87 

delighted  over  the  possibilities  for  fun  at  Snow 
Camp.  Tom  and  his  friends  did  not  pay  much 
attention  to  what  was  inside  the  great  log  house; 
but  before  noon  they  knew  all  that  was  to  be  done 
outside  and  were  unhappy  only  because  they  did 
not  know  which  to  do  first.  In  addition,  Busy 
Izzy  had  exhausted  himself  and  every  man  about 
the  place,  asking  questions;  and  finally  Tom  and 
Bob  gagged  him  with  his  own  handkerchief  and 
threatened  to  tie  him  up  and  not  give  him  any  din- 
ner if  he  did  not  stop  it. 

81  But  do  let  him  ask  for  a  second  helping  to 
pudding,  boys,"  urged  the  kind-hearted  Heavy. 
'•  It's  going  to  be  fine — I  had  a  taste  of  the  dough. 
Mary  says  it's  *  Whangdoodle  Pudding,  with 
Lallygag  Sauce  ';  but  you  needn't  be  afraid  of  the 
fancy  name  she  gives  it,"  added  the  plump  girl, 
rolling  her  eyes.     "  It's  just  scrumptious !  " 

They  laughed  at  Heavy's  ecstasies,  yet  all  did 
full  justice  to  the  pudding.  Such  a  hearty  appe- 
tite as  everybody  had!  The  snapping  cold  and 
the  odor  of  balsam  and  pine  gave  a  tang  to  the 
taste  that  none  of  them  had  ever  known  before. 
The  girls  were  full  of  plans  for  quiet  hours 
around  the  great  open  fires,  as  well  as  for  the  out- 
of-door  fun;  but  Tom  was  leader  on  this  first  day 
of  the  vacation  at  Snow  Camp,  and  he  declared 
for  skating  in  the  afternoon. 

Even  Mrs.  Murchiston  went  down  to  the  pond. 


88  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

The  boys  took  turns  in  pushing  her  about  in  an 
ice-chair.  But  Mr.  Cameron  put  on  skates  and 
proved  himself  master  of  them,  too.  Long  Jerry 
came  down  to  watch  them  and  grinned  broadly 
at  the  boys'  antics  on  the  ice.  Jerry  was  no 
skater;  but  he  was  stringing  snowshoes  and  by  the 
morning  would  have  enough  ready  for  the  whole 
party  and  promised  to  teach  the  young  folk  the 
art  of  walking  on  them  in  half  a  day. 

That  afternoon  on  the  ice  only  put  an  edge  on 
the  appetite  of  the  whole  party  for  the  frost 
games.  "  Plenty  of  time  to  make  those  pine- 
needle  pillows  for  the  girls  at  Briarwood,  if  we 
have  a  stormy  day,"  quoth  Helen  Cameron. 
"  We  mustn't  mope  before  the  fire  this  evening. 
The  moon  is  coming  up — big  as  a  bushel  and  red 
as  fife!     Oh,  we'll  have  some  fun  this  night." 

"  What  now?  "  demanded  Madge  Steele.  "  I 
see  the  boys  have  stolen  out  after  supper.  A 
sleigh  ride?  " 

"  No ;  although  that  would  be  fun,"  said  Helen. 

"  Oh,  dear !  Can't  we  take  it  easy  this  even- 
ing? "  whined  Heavy,  after  a  mighty  yawn.  "I 
was  so  hungry " 

"  You  shouldn't  give  way  to  that  dreadful  ap- 
petite of  yours,  Jennie  Stone ! "  cried  Belle 
Tingley.  "  If  there's  any  fun  afoot  I  want  to  be 
in  it." 

"Come  on!     All  ready!"  shouted  the  boys 


THE  FROST   GAMES  89 

outside  the  house,  and  the  sextette  of  girls  ran  to 
get  on  their  wraps. 

They  bundled  out  of  the  house  to  find  Tom, 
Bob  and  Isadore  each  drawing  a  long,  flat,  narrow 
toboggan.    Helen  clapped  her  hands  and  shouted: 

"  Fine!  fine!    See  these  sleds,  girls." 

"  We're  going  to  shoot  the  chutes,  Heavy," 
sang  out  Madge.  "  Do  you  think  you  can  stand 
it?" 

"  Now,  don't  any  of  you  back  out,"  Tom  said. 
"Each  of  us  will  take  two  girls  on  his  sled. 
There's  plenty  of  room." 

"  You'd  better  draw  matches  for  us,"  said  the 
irrepressible  Heavy.  "  That  is,  if  you  intend 
drawing  us — two  to  each  toboggan — to  the  top  of 
that  slide.  I  never  did  care  much  for  boys — 
the>  t  o  greedy ;  but  which  one  of  you  could  drag 
M«  4**e  and  me,  for  instance,  up  that  hill?  " 

"We  draw  the  line  at  that,"  cried  Tom. 
"  Those  who  can't  toddle  along  to  the  top  of  the 
chute  needn't  expect  to  ride  to  the  bottom." 

They  all  hurried  off,  laughing  and  shouting. 
It  was  a  most  beautiful  moonlight  night.  Save 
their  own  voices,  only  the  distant  barking  of  a  fox 
broke  the  great  silence  that  wrapped  the  snow- 
clad  country  about.  None  of  the  grown  folk  fol- 
lowed them.  The  party  had  the  hill  to  them- 
selves. 

It  being  a  race  to  the  hill-top,  with  the  first  two 


90  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

girls  to  take  their  places  on  the  toboggan  of  the 
first  boy,  naturally  Heavy  was  out  of  the  running, 
and  bound  to  be  last.  She  came  panting  to  the 
starting  platform,  and  found  Ruth  waiting  to 
share  Isadore's  sled  with  her. 

Tom,  with  Madge  and  Belle,  had  already  shot 
down  the  icy  chute.  Bob  Steele,  with  Lluella  and 
Helen  before  him,  dropped  over  the  verge  of  the 
platform  and  their  toboggan  began  to  whiz  down 
the  pathway,  as  Jennie  plumped  down  upon  the 
remaining  toboggan. 

"  Come  on,  Ruthie !  You're  a  good  little  thing 
to  wait  for  me — and  I  guess  Tom  Cameron  didn't 
like  it  much,  either?     He  wanted  you." 

"  Nonsense,  Jennie,"  returned  Ruth,  with  a 
laugh.  "What  does  it  matter?  As  long  as  we 
all  get  a  slide ' 

"  Hurry  up,  now,"  cried  Busy  Izzy,  troubled 
because  he  was  behind  his  comrades,  if  the  girls 
were  not.     "  Sit  tight." 

He  pushed  the  toboggan  over  the  edge  of  the 
drop  almost  before  Ruth  was  settled  behind  Jen- 
nie. He  flung  himself  upon  the  sled,  sitting 
sideways,  and  "  kicked "  them  over  the  drop. 
The  toboggan  struck  the  icy  course  and  began  to 
descend  it  like  an  arrow  shot  from  a  bow.  Jen- 
nie Stone  shrieked  a  single,  gasping: 

"Oh!" 

The  toboggan  whizzed  down  the  path,  with  the 


THE  FROST  GAMES  9* 

low,  icy  dykes  on  either  hand,  and  so  rapidly  that 
their  eyes  watered  and  they  could  not  see.  It 
seemed  only  a  breath  when  the  third  toboggan 
shot  onto  the  level  at  the  bottom,  and  they  passed 
the  crew  of  the  first  sled  already  coming  back. 
It  was  exhilarating  sport — it  was  delightful.  Yet 
every  time  they  started  Ruth  felt  as  though  the 
breath  left  her  lungs  and  that  she  couldn't  catch 
it  again  until  they  slowed  down  at  the  bottom  of 
the  hill. 

She  would  have  felt  safer  with  one  of  the  other 
boys,  too.  Isadore  Phelps  was  none  too  careful, 
and  once  the  toboggan  ran  up  one  of  the  side  dykes 
and  almost  spilled  them  on  the  course. 

"  Do  look  out  what  you  are  about,  Isadore," 
Ruth  begged,  when  they  reached  the  bottom  of 
the  slide  that  time.  "  If  we  should  have  a 
spill » 

"  Great  would  be  the  fall  thereof ! "  grinned 
Isadore,  looking  at  Heavy,  puffing  up  the  hill  be- 
side them. 

"  You  take  care  now,  and  don't  spatter  me  all 
over  the  slide,"  said  the  cheerful  stout  girl,  whose 
doll-like  face  was  almost  always  wreathed  in 
smiles. 

But  Isadore  was  really  becoming  reckless.  To 
tell  the  truth,  Bob  and  Tom  were  laughing  at  him. 
He  had  been  the  last  to  get  away  each  time  from 
the  starting  platform,  and  he  could  not  catch  up 


92  RUTH  FIELDING  AT  SNOW  CAMP 

with  the  others.  Perhaps  that  was  the  stout  girl's 
fault;  but  Ruth  would  climb  the  hill  no  faster  than 
Jennie,  and  so  the  third  toboggan  continued  far 
behind  the  others.  As  they  panted  up  the  hill 
Tom  and  his  two  companions  shot  past  and  waved 
their  hands  at  them;  then  followed  Bob  Steele's 
crew  and  Helen  shouted  some  laughing  gibe  at 
them.     Isadore's  face  grew  black. 

"  I  declare !  I  wish  you  girls  would  stir  your- 
selves. Hurry  up!"  he  growled  quite  un- 
gallantly. 

"What's  the  hurry?"  panted  Heavy. 
"  There's  nobody  paying  us  for  this ;  is  there  ?  Let 
'em  catch  up  with  us  and  then  we  will  be — all — to 
— geth — er — Woof!  My  goodness  me,  I'm 
winded,"  and  she  had  to  stop  on  the  hill  and 
breathe. 

"  Go  on  and  leave  us.  Take  one  trip  by  your- 
self, Isadore,"  said  Ruth. 

"  No,  I  won't,"  returned  Phelps,  ungratefully. 
"  Then  they'll  all  gab  about  it.  Come  along;  will 
you?" 

"Don't  you  mind  him,  Jennie,"  whispered 
Ruth.     "  I  don't  think  he's  very  nice." 

They  got  aboard  the  toboggan  once  more  and 
Isadore  recklessly  flung  himself  on  it,  too,  and 
pushed  off.  At  the  moment  there  came  a  shrill 
hail  from  below.  Tom  was  sending  up  some 
word  of  warning — at  the  very  top  of  his  voice. 


THE  FROST  GAMES  93 

But  the  thsae  just  starting  down  the  slide  could 
not  distinguish  his  words. 

Jennie  shut  her  eyes  tight  the  moment  the  tobog- 
gan lurched  forward,  so  she  could  not  possibly  see 
anything  that  lay  before  them.  Ruth  peered  over 
the  stout  girl's  shoulder,  the  wind  half  blinding 
her  eyes  with  tears.  But  the  moonlight  lay  so 
brilliantly  upon  the  track  that  it  was  revealed  like 
midday.  Something  lay  prone  and  black  upon 
the  icy  surface  of  the  slide. 


CHAPTER  XII 

PERIL — AND  A  TAFFY  PULL 

It  seemed  to  Ruth  Fielding,  as  the  toboggan 
dashed  down  the  chute  toward  that  strange  object 
in  their  course,  as  though  her  lips  were  glued  to- 
gether. She  could  not  speak — she  could  not  utter 
a  sound. 

And  yet  this  inaction — this  dumbness — lasted 
but  a  very  few  seconds.  The  thing  upon  the  slide 
lay  more  than  half  way  down  the  hill — a  quarter 
of  a  mile  ahead  when  her  stinging  eyes  first  saw 
it 

Toward  it  the  sled  rushed,  gathering  speed 
every  moment,  and  the  object  on  the  track  grew 
in  her  eyes  apace.  When  her  lips  parted  she 
screamed  so  that  Isadore  heard  her  word's  dis- 
tinctly : 

"Stop,  Izzy!  There's  something  ahead! 
Look!" 

Of  course  it  was  foolish  to  beg  of  the  boy  to 
stop.  Nothing  could  halt  them  once  they  had 
started  upon  the  icy  incline.  But  her  cry  warned 
Isadore  of  the  peril  ahead. 

94 


PERIL-AND  A  TAFFY  PULL  g5 

He  echoed  her  cry,  and  was  as  panic-stricken  as 
the  girl  herself.  At  first,  the  thing  looked  like 
somebody  lying  across  the  slide.  Had  one  of 
their  friends  fallen  off  either  of  the  other  tobog- 
gans, and  been  too  hurt  to  rise?  Then,  the  next 
instant,  both  Isadore  and  Ruth  knew  that  the 
thing  was  too  small  for  that. 

It  was  really  a  jacket  that  Bob  Steele  had  tied 
about  his  neck  by  the  arms.  On  the  way  down 
the  sleeves  had  become  untied  and  the  jacket  had 
spread  itself  out  upon  the  slide  to  its  full  breadth.. 

It  didn't  seem  as  though  such  a  thing  could  do 
the  coming  toboggan  any  harm;  but  Ruth  and  Isa- 
dore Phelps  knew  well  that  if  it  went  upon  the 
outspread  coat  there  would  be  a  spill.  It  would 
act  like  a  brake  to  the  sled,  and  that  frail  vehicle 
on  which  the  three  young  folk  rode  would  stop 
so  abruptly  that  they  would  be  flung  off  upon  the 
icy  course. 

Ruth  at  least  understood  this  peril  cmly  too 
well;  but  she  made  no  further  outcry.  Jennie 
Stone's  eyes  were  still  tight  shut. 

One  moment  the  outspread  jacket  ky  far  be- 
fore them,  across  the  path.  The  next  instant — 
or  so  it  seemed — they  were  right  upon  it. 

"  Hang  on !  "  yelled  Isadore,  and  shot  his»  boot- 
heel  into  the  icy  surface  of  the  slide. 

The  toboggan  swerved.  Jennie  uttered  a  cry. 
The  sled  went  up  the  left  hand  dyke  like  a  bolting 


96  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

horse   climbing  a   roadside  wall  or  a   side  hill. 

In  Ruth's  ears  rang  the  shouts  of  their  friends, 
who  were  coming  hastily  up  the  hillside.  They 
could  do  nothing  to  help  the  endangered  crew,  nor 
could  the  latter  help  themselves. 

Up  the  toboggan  shot  into  the  air.  It  leaped 
the  shoulder  of  the  dyke  and— crew  and  all — 
darted  out  into  space. 

That  was  certainly  an  awful  moment  for  Ruth 
Fielding  and  her  two  companions.  Jennie's  inter- 
mittent squeal  turned  into  a  sudden*  shriek — as 
keen  and  nerve-racking  as  the  whistle  of  a  locomo- 
tive. Isadore  Phelps  "  blew  up  "  with  a  muffled 
roar  as  he  turned  half  a  somersault  in  the  air  and 
landed  headfirst  in  a  huge  snowdrift. 

That  is  how  the  girls  landed,  too.  At  least,  if 
they  didn't  dive  headfirst  into  the  drift,  they  were 
pretty  well  swallowed  up  in  it.  And  it  was  pro- 
vidential that  they  all  did  find  such  a  soft  cushion 
when  they  landed. 

Their  individual  shrieks  were  broken  off  sud- 
denly by  the  smothering  snow.  Their  friends, 
on  the  other  side  of  the  slide,  came  plunging 
across  the  course,  and  Bob  Steele,  slipping  on  the 
smooth  surface,  kicked  up  both  feet  high  in  the 
air,  landed  with  a  crash  on  the  small  of  his  back, 
and  finished  the  slide  to  the  very  bottom  of  the 
chute  in  that  most  undignified  position. 

Bob's  accident  turned  the  whole  affair  into  a 


PERIL— AND   A   TAFFY   PULL  97 

most  ludicrous  scene.  Tom  Cameron  laughed  so 
hard  that  he  scarcely  had  the  strength  to  help  the 
girls  out  of  the  snowdrift.  As  for  Isadore,  he 
had  to  scramble  out  by  himself — and  the  soft 
snow  had  got  down  his  neck,  and  he  had  lost  his 
hat,  his  ears  were  full  of  snow,  and  altogether  he 
was  in  what  Madge  Steele  called  "  a  state  of 
mind." 

"Huh!"  Izzy  growled,  "you  all  can  laugh. 
Wait!  I'll  get  square  with  you  girls,  now,  you 
better  believe  that." 

And  he  actually  started  off  for  the  camp  in  a 
most  abused* state.  The  others  could  not  help 
their  laughter — the  more  so  that  what  seemed  for 
a  few  seconds  to  promise  disaster  had  turned  out 
to  be  nothing  but  a  most  amusing  catastrophe. 

This  ended  the  coasting  for  this  particular  even- 
ing, however.  Jennie  Stone  was  pried  out  of 
the  snowdrift  last  of  all,  and  they  all  went  to  the 
bottom  of  the  hill  where  Bob  Steele  sat  with  his 
back  against  a  tree  trunk,  waiting,  as  he  said,  for 
the  "  world  to  stop  turning  around  so  fast."  His 
swift  descent  had  made  him  dizzy. 

They  all  ran  back  to  Snow  Camp,  catching  up 
with  Isadore  before  he  got  there  with  his  grouch, 
and  Tom  and  Bob  fell  upon  the  grouch  and 
dumped  it  into  another  snowbank — boy  and  all — 
and  managed  in  the  scuffle  to  bring  Busy  Izzy  into 
a  better  state  of  mind. 


98  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"  Just  the  same,"  he  declared,  "  I'll  get  square 
with  those  girls  for  laughing  at  me — you  see  if  I 
don't !" 

"  A  lot  of  good  that'll  do  you,"  returned  Tom 
Cameron.  "And  why  shouldn't  they  laugh? 
Do  you  suppose  that  the  sight  of  you  on  your 
head  in  a  snowbank  with  your  legs  waving  in  the 
wind  was  something  to  make  them  weep? 
Huh!" 

But  when  they  got  inside  the  big  hall,  where 
the  two  fires  burned,  Izzy  forgot  his  grouch. 
There  was  a  basket  of  popcorn  and  several 
"poppers"  and  the  crowd  of  young  folk  were 
soon  shelling  corn  and  popping  it,  turning  the 
fluffy,  snow-white  kernels  into  big  bowls,  over 
which  thick  cream  was  poured,  and,  as  Jennie  de- 
clared, "  they  ate  till  they  couldn't  eat  another 
crumb !  " 

"  Isn't  it  just  grand  ?  "cried  Belle  Tingley,  when 
the  girls  had  retired  to  the  big  room  in  which 
Ruth  Fielding  had  slept  alone  the  night  before. 
"  I  never  did  know  you  could  have  so  much  fun  in 
the  woods  in  the  dead  of  winter.  Helen!  your 
father  is  just  the  dearest  man  to  bring  us  up  here! 
We'll  none  of  us  forget  this  vacation." 

But  in  the  morning  there  were  new  things  to 
do  and  learn.  The  resources  of  Snow  Camp 
seemed  unending.  As  sodi  as  breakfast  was  over 
there  was  Long  Jerry  ready  with  snowshoes  for 


PERIL— AND   A   TAFFY   PULL  99 

all.  Tom  and  Helen,  as  well  as  Bob  Steele,  were 
somewhat  familiar  with  these  implements.  And 
Ruth  had  had  one  unforgettable  experience  with 
them. 

But  at  first  there  were  a  good  many  tumbles, 
and  none  of  the  party  went  far  from  the  big  lodge 
on  this  occasion.  They  came  into  the  mid-day 
dinner  pretty  well  tired,  but  oh,  how  hungry ! 

"  I  declare,  eating  never  seemed  so  good  be- 
fore," Bob  Steele  murmured.  "  I  really  wish  I 
could  eat  more;  but  room  I  have  not!  " 

Heavy  went  to  sleep  before  the  fire  directly 
after  the  meal,  but  was  awakened  when  the  girls 
all  trooped  out  to  the  kitchen  to  make  molasses 
taffy.  The  boys  had  gone  with  Long  Jerry  to 
try  to  shoot  squirrels ;  but  they  came  back  without 
having  any  luck  before  the  girls  were  fairly  in 
possession  of  Janey's  kitchen. 

"  Let  us  help — aw,  do !  "  cried  Tom,  smelling 
the  molasses  boiling  on  the  range  and  leading  the 
way  into  the  kitchen. 

11  You  can't  cook  anything  good  to  eat  when 
there  are  boys  within  a  mile,  and  they  not  know 
it,"  sighed  Jennie  Stone. 

"  Or  be  able  to  keep  them  out  of  it,"  declared 
Madge  Steele.  "  I  suppose  we  shall  have  to  let 
them  hang  around,  Helen." 

"  I  tell  you !  "  cried  Helen,  who  never  would 
go  back  upon  her  twin,  and  who  liked  to  have  him 


ioo  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

around,  "  we'll  make  some  nut  candy.  There's 
nuts — half  a  bushel  of  them.  The  boys  must 
crack  and  pick  the  nuts  and  we'll  make  some  wal- 
nut taffy — it  will  be  lots  nicer  than  plain  taffy." 

"  Oh,  well,  that  does  put  another  face  upon  the 
matter,"  laughed  Lluella  Fairfax. 

"  But  they  must  all  three  whistle  while  they're 
picking  out  the  nuts,"  cried  Heavy.  "  I  know 
them !  The  nut  meats  will  never  go  into  the  taffy 
pan  if  they  don't  whistle." 

Tom  and  his  chums  agreed  to  this  and  in  a  few 
minutes  they  were  all  three  sitting  gravely  on  the 
big  settee  by  the  fire,  a  flatiron  in  each  boy's  lap, 
each  with  a  hammer  and  the  basket  of  nuts  in 
reach,  and  all  dolefully  whistling — with  as  much 
discord  as  possible.  The  whistling  did  certainly 
try  the  girls'  nerves;  but  the  boys  were  not  to  be 
trusted  under  any  other  conditions. 

Busy  Izzy,  however — that  arch  schemer — had 
not  forgiven  the  girls  for  laughing  at  his  overset 
on  the  toboggan  slide  the  night  before.  And  as 
he  sat  whistling  "  Good  Night,  Ladies "  in  a 
dreadful  minor,  he  evolved  such  a  plan  for  re- 
prisal in  his  fertile  mind  that  his  eyes  began  to 
snap  and  he  could  hardly  whistle  for  the  grin  that 
wreathed  his  lips. 

" Keep  at  it,  Mr.  Isadore  Phelps!  "  cried  Ruth, 
first  to  detect  Izzy's  defection.  "We're  watch- 
ing you." 


PERIL— AND  A  TAFFY   PUU;  joi 

11  Come !  aren't  we  going  to  have  a  chance  to  eat 
a  single  kernel  ?"  Izzy  growled. 

u  Not  one,"  said  Helen,  stoutly.  "  After  you 
have  the  nuts  cracked  and  picked  out,  we'll  spread 
the  kernels  in  the  dripping  pans,  the  taffy  will  then 
be  ready,  we'll  pour  it  over,  and  then  set  the  candy 
out  to  cool  in  the  snow.  After  that  we'll  give  you 
some — if  you're  good." 

"  Huh!  "  grunted  Isadore.  "  I  guess  I  know  a 
trick  worth  two  of  that.  We'll  get  our  share,  fel- 
lows," and  he  winked  at  Tom  and  Bob. 


\ 


CHAPTER  XIII 

SHELLS  AND  KERNELS 

The  three  boys  stuck  to  their  work,  with  only  a 
whisper  or  two,  until  there  was  a  great  bowl  of 
nutmeats,  and  Ruth  pronounced  the  quantity  suffi- 
cient. Meanwhile,  the  taffy  was  boiling  in  the 
big  kettle,  and  Ruth  and  Jennie  had  buttered  three 
dripping  pans.  They  spread  the  nutmeats  evenly 
in  the  pans  and  then  set  the  pans  carefully  on  a 
snowdrift  outside  the  back  door  to  get  thoroughly 
cold  before  the  taffy  was  poured  thinly  over  the 
nuts. 

Everybody  was  on  the  qui  vlve  about  the  candy 
then.  The  girls  couldn't  drive  the  boys  out  of 
the  room.  The  bubbling  molasses  filled  the  great 
kitchen  with  a  rich  odor.  Jennie  began  popping 
corn  with  which  to  make  cornballs  of  the  taffy 
that  could  not  be  run  into  the  three  pans  of  nuts. 

Isadore  Phelps  disappeared  for  possibly  three 
minutes — no  longer;  and  the  girls  never  missed 
him. 

At  last  the  candy  could  be  "  spun  "  and  Ruth 
pronounced  it  ready  to  pour  into  the  pans  out- 
side.    Isadore  said  he  would  help — the  kettle  was 

102 


SHELLS  AND   KERNELS  103 

too  heavy  for  the  girls  to  carry.  He  was  adjured 
to  be  very,  very  careful  and  the  girls  followed  him 
to  the  door  in  a  body  when  he  carried  out  the 
steaming  couldron. 

"Do  pour  it  carefully,  Izzy!"  cried  Helen. 

"  If  that  boy  spoils  it,  I'll  never  forgive  him," 
sighed  Heavy. 

Ruth  ran  out  after  him.  But  Isadore  took 
great  care  in  pouring  the  mixture  into  the  pans 
as  he  had  been  instructed,  and  even  she  had  no 
complaint  to  make.  He  hurried  back  to  the 
kitchen,  too,  poured  the  residue  of  the  boiled 
molasses  upon  the  popcorn  and  they  made  up  the 
cornballs  at  once. 

"  Come  on,  now,"  said  Izzy,  in  a  great  hurry. 
"  Give  us  fellows  our  share  of  the  cornballs  and 
we'll  beat  it.  We're  going  skating.  We'll  help 
you  eat  your  old  candy  when  we  come  back. 

II  Maybe  it  will  be  all  gone  by  that  time,"  said 
Heavy,  slily. 

II I  wish  you  joy  of  it,  then,  Miss  Smartie,"  re- 
turned Isadore,  chuckling.     "  Come  on,  fellows." 

They  seized  their  skates  and  ran  away.  Isa- 
dore could  hardly  talk  for  laughter;  and  he  car- 
ried a  good  sized  paper  bag  besides  his  share  of 
the  popcorn  balls. 

The  girls  "  cleaned  up  " — for  that  had  been 
the  agreement  with  Janey  when  she  let  them  have 
her  kitchen — and  then  sat  down  before  the  hall 


104  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

fire  to  make  pine  pillows,  of  which  they  were  de- 
termined to  take  a  number  to  Briarwood  to  give 
to  their  friends.  Helen  had  bought  a  lot  of 
denim  covers  stamped  and  lettered  with  mottoes, 
including  the  ever-favorite  "  I  Pine  for  Thee  and 
Likewise  Balsam." 

But  although  they  were  very  merry  around  the 
fire,  Heavy  could  not  long  be  content.  The  pop- 
corn balls  disappeared  like  magic  and  the  stout 
girl  kept  worrying  the  others  with  questions  about 
the  taffy. 

"  Don't  you  suppose  that  candy's  cool?  I  de- 
clare! those  boys  might  play  a  joke  on  us — they 
might  creep  back  and  steal  all  three  pans." 

"  Dear  me,  Jennie !  "  cried  Ruth  Fielding.  "  If 
you  are  so  anxious,  why  don't  you  run  and  bring 
a  pan  in?  We'll  see  if  it's  brittle  enough  to 
break  up." 

Heavy  sighed,  but  put  down  her  work  and 
arose.  "  It's  always  I  who  has  to  do  the  work," 
she  complained. 

"  Bring  the  pan  in  here  and  break  the  candy," 
advised  Madge  Steele.  "  We'll  have  to  watch 
you." 

Heavy  came  back  with  one  of  the  candy  pans  in 
short  order,  bringing  a  hammer,  too,  with  which 
to  crack  the  brittle  taffy. 

"  Come!  we'll  see  how  it  tastes;  and  if  it's  good 
enough,"  she  added,  smiling  broadly,  "  we  won't 


SHELLS   AND   KERNELS  105 

let  the  boys  have  even  a  little  bit.     They  were 
mean  enough  to  go  off  skating  without  us." 

She  cracked  up  a  part  of  the  candy,  passed  the 
pan  around  quickly,  and  popped  a  piece  into  her 
own  mouth.  In  a  moment  she  spat  the  candy  into 
the  fire,  with  a  shriek,  and  put  her  hand  to  her 
jaw. 

"Oh!  oh!  oh!"  she  cried. 

"What's  the  matter  with  you,  Heavy?"  de- 
manded Helen,  startled. 

"  Oh,  I've  broken  a  tooth  I  believe.     Oh !  " 

"Why  were  you  so  greedy?"  began  Madge, 
sedately.  And  then,  suddenly,  she  stopped  chew- 
ing the  bit  of  candy  she  had  taken  into  her  mouth, 
and  a  sudden  flush  overspread  her  face. 

"  Why,  here's  a  piece  of  nutshell ! "  cried 
Lluella. 

"  How  careless  those  boys  were ! "  Helen 
added.  "They  got  some  of  the  shells  in  with 
the  meat." 

"  We  should  have  expected  it,"  Belle  cried. 
"  They  never  should  have  been  trusted  to  crack 
the  nuts." 

"  Oh,  girls !  "  gasped  Ruth,  who  had  quickly 
examined  the  candy  in  the  pan. 

Her  voice  was  tragic,  and  the  others  looked  at 
her  (all  but  Madge)  in  surprise.  "What  have 
those  horrid  boys  done?"  demanded  Jennie 
Stone. 


106  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"They've  spoiled  it  all!"  Ruth  cried 
"There's  nothing  but  shells  in  the  candy. 
They've  ruined  it!  " 

"  Oh!  oh!  oh!  "  shrieked  Heavy  again.  M  It 
can't  be  true!  " 

"  It  can  be,  for  it  is!  "  said  Madge  Steele,  de- 
cidedly. "  Those  mean  boys !  I  certainly  will 
fix  Bob  for  that." 

"And  Tom!"  cried  Helen,  almost  in  tears. 
"  How  could  he  be  so  mean?  " 

"  I  don't  believe  Tom  did  it,  Helen,"  said  Ruth, 
slowly. 

"  He  was  just  as  bad  as  the  others,  I  venture 
to  say,"   Madge  said,   sharply. 

"  If  he  is,  I  won't  speak  to  him  for  a  month!  " 
cried  his  twin  sister.  "  We  won't  have  anything 
more  to  do  with  them  while  we  are  here — there 
now!     Oh,  how  mean!" 

"  Maybe  it's  only  one  pan  that  is  this  way," 
suggested  Heavy,  timidly. 

They  all  ran  out  to  see.  The  other  pans  were 
just  like  the  first  one.  The  nut  meats  had  been 
removed  and  shells  scattered  in  the  pans  instead. 
No  wonder  Isadore  Phelps  had  wanted  to  pour 
the  molasses  taffy! 

"And  they've  got  all  the  meats,"  said  Belle 
Tingley.  "  They  are  eating  them  and  chuckling 
over  the  trick  right  now,  I  wager." 

"  It's  a  mean,  mean  trick!  "  gasped  Helen,  in  a 


/v 


SHELLS  AND  KERNELS  107 

temper.  "  I  never  will  forgive  Tom.  And  I 
just  hate  those  other  boys." 

11  You're  welcome  to  hate  Bobbie,"  said 
Madge.     "He  deserves  it." 

"Such  a  contemptible  joke!  "  groaned  Belle. 

"Let's  make  some  more,"  Ruth  suggested. 
11  And  we  won't  give  them  any." 

11  No.  I  don't  want  to  go  all  through  it 
again,"  Helen  said,  shaking  her  head. 

At  that  moment  the  telephone  rang.  Ruth  was 
nearest  and  she  jumped  up  and  answered  the  call. 
At  the  other  end  of  the  wire  an  excited  female 
voice  demanded: 

"Is  this  Snow  Camp?" 

"Yes,"  replied  Ruth,  "it  is." 

"Mr.  Cameron's  camp?" 

"  Yes.     But  he  is  not  in  the  house  just  now." 

"  Aren't  any  of  your  men-folks  there?  "  queried 
the  excited  voice. 

"  I  guess  most  of  the  men  are  drawing  in  logs 
for  the  fires,"  said  Ruth.  "What  is  the  mat- 
ter?" 

"  I  want  to  warn  you  all  to  look  out  for  the 
panther.  It  is  supposed  to  be  coming  your  way — 
towards  Snow  Camp.  The  beast  has  just  killed  a 
pig  for  us,  and  was  frightened  away.  It's  done 
other  damage  to-day  among  the  neighbors'  cattle. 
Do  you  hear  me?" 

"  Oh,  I  hear  you !  "  cried  Ruth,  and  then  held 


108  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

her  hand  over  the  mouthpiece  and  spoke  to  the 
other  girls :  "  That  panther — that  catamount !  '* 
she  cried.  "  It  is  supposed  to  be  coming  this  way. 
Where  is  your  father,  Helen  ?. "  And  Long  Jerry 
Todd2'* 


CHAPTER  XIV 

A  TELEPHONE   CHASE 

The  excited  screaming  of  the  other  girls 
brought  Mrs.  Murchiston  to  the  hall  in  a  hurry. 
When  she  heard  what  had  caused  the  excitement 
she  called  the  maids,  intending  to  send  one  of 
them  for  Mr.  Cameron. 

But  just  then  the  woman — a  farmer's  wife 
along  the  road — began  talking  to  Ruth  again,  and 
the  maids  learned  from  her  answers  into  the 
'phone  the  cause  of  the  excitement.  Go  out  into 
the  open  when  the  catamount  might  be  within  a 
couple  of  miles  of  the  lodge?     No,  indeed ! 

Mary  threw  her  apron  over  her  head  and  sank 
down  on  the  floor,  threatening  hysterics.  Janey 
was  scared  both  dumb  and  motionless.  These 
women  who  had  lived  all  their  lives  in  towns,  or 
near  towns,  were  not  fit  to  cope  with  the  startling 
incidents  of  the  backwoods. 

The  woman  on  the  wire  explained  to  Ruth  that 
she  was  telephoning  all  along  the  line  toward 
Scarboro,  warning  each  farmer  of  the  big  cat's 
approach. 

"But  if  it  keeps  on  in  the  same  direction  it 
109 


HO  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

was  going  when  we  saw  it  last,  the  creature  will 
strike  Snow  Camp  first,"  declared  the  excited  lady. 
"  You  must  get  your  men  out  with  guns  and  dogs 
u.bj  stop  the  beast  if  you  can.  It's  mad  with 
hanger  and  it  will  do  some  dreadful  damage  if  it 
is  not  killed." 

Ruth  repeated  this  to  her  friends,  and  asked 
Mrs.  Murchiston  what  they  should  do. 

"  If  the  baste  comes  here,"  cried  Mary,  the 
maid,  "  he  can  jump  right  into  these  low  winders. 
We'll  be  clawed  to  pieces." 

"  There  are  heavy  shutters  for  these  windows," 
Mrs.  Murchiston  said,  faintly.  "  But  they  are 
to  heavy  for  us  to  handle — and  I  suppose  they 
are  stored  in  one  of  the  outbuildings,  anyway." 

"  Why,  I  wouldn't  go  out  of  doors  for  a  for- 
tune !  "  cried  Lluella  Fairfax. 

"  But  the  creature  isn't  here  yet,"  Ruth  said, 
doubtfully. 

" How  do  you  know  how  fast  he's  traveling?" 
returned  Helen,  quickly. 

"  But  think  of  the  boys  down  there  skating," 
said  her  chum. 

"  Oh,  oh !  "  gasped  Jennie.  "  If  that  panther 
eats  them  up  they'll  be  more  than  well  paid  for 
spoiling  our  taffy." 

"  Hush,  Jennie !  "  commanded  Madge.  "  This 
is  no  time  for  joking.  How  are  we  going  to  warn 
them — and  the  men  in  the  woods?  " 


A  TELEPHONE  CHASE  in 

"And  father?  "  cried  Helen  Cameron. 

"Oh,  I  wouldn't  dare  go  out!"  gasped  Belle 
Tingley. 

But  Ruth  ran  out  into  the  big  kitchen  and 
opened  the  door.  The  outbuildings  were  not  far 
away,  but  not  a  soul  appeared  about  them.  There 
seemed  to  be  a  brooding  silence  over  the  whole 
place.  The  men  were  so  deep  in  the  woods  that 
she  could  not  hear  a  sound  from  them;  nor  was 
the  ring  of  skates  on  the  pond  apparent  to  her 
ear. 

"Come  back,  Ruth!  come  back!"  begged  her 
chum,  who  had  followed  her.  "  Suppose  that 
beast  should  be  hiding  near?" 

"  I  don't  suppose  he's  within  a  mile  of  the 
camp,"  said  Ruth,  her  voice  unshaken.  "  There 
are  all  the  guns  in  the  hall — even  the  little  shot- 
guns. I  don't  suppose  the  men  have  a  gun  with 
them,  and  of  course  the  boys  have  not.  And  both 
parties  should  be  warned.     I'm  going " 

"  Oh,  Ruth !  you're  mad !  "  cried  Helen.  "  You 
mustn't  go." 

"  Who'll  go,  then  ?  "  demanded  her  friend.  "  I 
guess  we're  all  equally  scared — Mrs.  Murchiston 
and  all." 

"  Nobody  will  go—" 

" I'm  going!  "  declared  Ruth,  firmly.  "  If  the 
panther  is  coming  from  that  woman's  house — the 
woman  who  telephoned — then  the  pond  is  in  the 


112  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

very  opposite  direction.    I'll  take  Tom's  rifle  and 
some  cartridges." 

"But  you  don't  know  how  to  shoot!"  cried 
Helen. 

"  We  ought  to  know.  It's  a  shame  that  girls 
don't  learn  to  handle  guns  just  like  boys.  I'm 
going  to  get  Long  Jerry  Todd  to  show  me  how." 

While  she  spoke  she  had  run  into  the  hall  and 
caught  up  Tom's  light  rifle.  She  knew  where  his 
ammunition  was,  too.  And  she  secured  half  a 
dozen  cartridges  and  put  them  into  the  magazine, 
having  seen  Tom  load  the  gun  the  day  before. 

"  You'll  shoot  yourself!  "  murmured  Helen. 

"  I  hope  not,"  returned  Ruth,  shaking  her  head. 
"  But  I  hope  I  won't  have  a  chance  to  shoot  the 
panther.  I  don't  want  to  see  that  awful  beast 
again." 

"  I  don't  see  how  you  dare,  Ruth  Fielding!  " 
cried  Helen. 

"Huh!  It  isn't  because  I'm  not  afraid,"  ad- 
mitted her  chum.  "  But  somebody  must  tell  those 
boys,  dear." 

Ruth  had  already  seized  her  coat  and  cap. 
She  shrugged  herself  into  the  former,  pulled  the 
other  down  upon  her  ears,  and  catching  up  the 
loaded  gun  ran  out  of  the  kitchen  just  before  Mrs. 
Murchiston,  who  had  suddenly  suspected  what  she 
was  about,  came  to  forbid  the  venture.  Ruth, 
however,  was  out  of  the  house  and  winging  her 


A  TELEPHONE  CHASE  113 

way  down  the  cleared  path  toward  the  pond,  be- 
fore the  governess  could  call  to  her. 

"  Oh,  she  will  be  killed,  Mrs.  Murchiston ! H 
cried  Helen,  in  tears. 

"Not  likely,"  declared  that  lady.  "But  she 
should  not  have  gone  out  without  my  permission.'* 

Nor  was  Ruth  altogether  as  courageous  as  she 
appeared.  She  did  not  suppose  that  the  huge  cat 
that  had  so  frightened  her  and  the  strange  boy 
that  Mr.  Cameron  had  brought  up  from  Cheslow, 
was  very  near  Snow  Camp  as  yet.  Yet  she 
glanced  aside  as  she  ran  with  expectation  in  her 
eyes,  and  when  of  a  sudden  something  jumped 
in  the  bushes,  she  almost  shrieked  and  ran  the 
faster. 

There  was  a  crash  beside  the  path,  the  bushes 
parted,  and  a  great,  fawn-colored  body  leaped  out 
into  the  path. 

"  Oh,  Reno !  "  Ruth  cried.  "  I  never  was  so 
frightened!  You  bad  dog — I  thought  you  were 
the  cat-o'-mountain." 

But  immediately  she  felt  that  her  fear  was  gone. 
Here  was  Tom's  faithful  mastiff,  whose  tried 
courage  she  knew,  and  which  she  knew  would  not 
fail  her  if  they  came  face  to  face  with  the  panther. 

She  hurried  on,  nevertheless,  to  the  pond,  to 
warn  the  boys;  but  to  her  surprise,  as  she  ap- 
proached the  ice,  she  heard  nothing  of  the  truants. 
There  was  no  ring  of  steel  on  the  ice,  nor  were 


Il4  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

their     voices     audible.     When     Ruth     Fielding 
reached  the  ice,  the  pond  was  deserted. 

"Now  what  could  have  happened  to  them? 
Where  have  they  gone?  "  thought  the  girl. 

She  hesitated,  not  alone  staring  about  the  open 
pond,  but  looking  sharply  on  either  side  into  the 
snow-mantled  woods.  Reno  remained  by  her  and 
she  had  a  hand  upon  his  collar.  Should  she 
shout?  Should  she  call  for  Tom  Cameron  and 
his  mates?  If  she  called,  and  the  terrible  cat 
was  within  earshot,  it  might  be  attracted  to  her 
by  the  sound. 

"Baby!"    she    finally   apostrophized   herself. 
"  I  don't  suppose  that  beast  is  anywhere  near. 
Here  goes!  "  and  she  raised  her  clear  voice  in  a 
.  lusty  shout. 

There  came,  however,  no  reply.  She  shouted 
again  and  again,  with  a  like  result. 

"Where  under  the  sun  could  those  boys  have 
gone?"  was  her  unspoken  question.  "Could 
they  have  returned  to  the  house  by  some  other 
path?" 

But  she  did  not  believe  this  was  so.  Rather, 
she  was  inclined  to  think  Tom  and  his  comrades 
had  gone  farther  than  the  pond.  There  was  a 
good-sized  stream  through  which  the  waters  of 
this  pond  emptied  into  Rolling  River.  That  out- 
let was  frozen  over,  too,  and  it  would  be  just  like 
the  three  boys  to  explore  the  frozen  stream. 


A  TELEPHONE   CHASE  1 15 

Ruth  wished  that  she  had  brought  her  skates 
instead  of  the  gun  with  her.  She  felt  now  that 
the  boys  should  indeed  be  warned  of  the  roaming 
panther,  as  they  had  gone  so  far  from  the  lodge. 
Here  was  Reno,  too.  If  she  told  the  mastiff  to 
find  Tom,  he  would  doubtless  do  so.  She  could 
even  send  some  written  word  to  the  boys  by  the 
dog — had  she  a  pencil  and  paper.  It  would  not 
be  the  first  time  that  Reno  had  played  message- 
bearer. 

But  the  warn  Tom  and  h's  companions  would 
not  be  all  Ruth  had  started  out  to  do.  Tom  was 
a  good  shot  and  a  steady  hand,  she  knew.  With 
this  loaded  rifle  in  his  hand  the  party  might  feel 
fit  to  meet  the  panther,  if  it  so  fell  out.  With- 
out any  weapon  even  the  noble  mastiff  might  prove 
an  insufficient  protection. 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE  BATTLE  IN  THE  SNOW 

It  was  a  fact  that  Ruth  was  tempted  to  run 
back  to  the  house,  just  as  fast  as  she  could  go,  and 
from  there  send  Reno  out  to  find  his  young  master. 
Whether  the  dog  could  have  traced  Tom  on  the 
ice,  however,  is  a  question,  for  Ruth  did  not  yield 
to  this  cowardly  suggestion.  She  had  come  out 
with  the  gun  to  find  the  boys,  and  her  hesitation 
at  the  edge  of  the  pond  was  only  momentary. 

She  started  down  the  pond  toward  the  stream, 
seeing  the  scratches  of  the  boys'  skates  leading  in 
that  direction.  There  could  be  no  doubt  as  to 
where  they  had  gone.  Ruth  only  wished  that  she 
had  brought  her  skates  when  she  ran  so  hastily 
from  Snow  Camp. 

Not  a  sound  reached  her  ears,  save  the  sharp 
twitter  of  a  sparrow  now  and  then,  the  patter  of 
Reno's  feet  on  the  ice,  and  the  rattle  of  the  loaded 
rifle  against  the  buttons  of  her  sweater-coat.  The 
forest  that  surrounded  the  pond  seemed  unin- 
habited.    The  axes  of  the  woodsmen  did  not  echo 

116 


THE   BATTLE  IN   THE   SNOW  117 

here,  and  the  boys  must  indeed  be  a  great  way  off, 
for  she  could  distinguish  no  sound  whatever  from 
them. 

Yet  she  had  no  doubt  that  she  was  following 
their  trail — not  even  when  she  came  down  to  the 
outlet  of  the  pond.  The  strokes  of  the  skates 
upon  the  ice  were  still  visible.  The  three  boys 
had  certainly  gone  down  the  frozen  stream. 

"  Come  on,  Reno !  "  she  exclaimed  aloud,  en- 
couraging herself  in  her  duty.  "  We'll  find  them 
yet.  They  certainly  could  not  have  gone  clear  to 
Rolling  River — that's  ten  miles  away!  " 

The  stream  was  not  ten  yards  across — nothing 
more  than  a  creek.  The  woods  and  underbrush 
shut  it  in  closely.  There  was  not  a  mark  in  the 
snow  on  either  hand  of  footsteps — not  that  Ruth 
could  see.  And  how  heavy  the  afternoon  silence 
was! 

Ruth  had  recovered  in  a  measure  from  the  first 
fear  she  had  felt  of  the  marauding  panther.  The 
beast,  had  he  traveled  toward  Snow  Camp,  was 
likely  miles  away  from  the  spot.  She  had  de- 
termined to  go  on  and  find  Tom  and  the  others, 
more  that  they  might  be  warned  of  peril  on  ap- 
proaching Snow  Camp,  than  for  any  other  reason. 

And  she  did  wish,  now,  that  Tom  and  the  other 
boys  would  appear.  She  was  more  than  a  mile — 
quite  two  miles,  indeed — from  the  lodge. 

"  I  guess  Mr.  Cameron  will  call  me  reckless 


Il8  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  GAMP 

again.  He  suggested  that  I  was  that  when  I  fol- 
lowed Fred  Hatfield — or  whatever  his  name  was 
— from  the  cars  at  Emoryville.  He'll  surely 
scold  me  for  this,"  thought  Ruth. 

She  kept  on  down  the  stream,  however,  and  at 
last  began  to  shout  for  her  boy  friends.  Her 
clear  voice  rang  from  wall  to  wall  of  the  forest; 
but  it  could  not  have  been  heard  far  into  the  snowy 
depths  on  either  hand.  Suddenly  Reno  growled  a 
little,  sniffed,  and  the  hair  upon  his  neck  began  to 
rise. 

"  Now,  there's  no  use  your  doing  that,  boy," 
Ruth  declared,  clutching  the  mastiff  tight  by  the 
collar  wkh  her  left  hand,  while  she  balanced  the 
rifle  in  her  right.  "If  you  hear  them,  bark! 
Tom  will  know  it's  you,  then,  and  your  bark  will 
carry  farther  than  my  voice,  I  do  believe." 

Reno  whined,  and  looked  from  side  to  side, 
sniffing  the  keen,  still  air.  It  seemed  as  though 
he  scented  danger,  but  did  not  know  for  sure  from 
which  direction  it  was  coming. 

"You're  scaring  me,  acting  so,  Reno!"  ex- 
claimed Ruth.  "  I  wish  you  wouldn't.  I  can't 
help  feeling  that  the  panther  is  right  behind  me 
somewhere.     Oh! " 

The  end  of  her  soliloquy  was  a  shriek.  Some- 
thing flashed  through  the  brush  clump  on  her  left 
hand.  Reno  broke  into  a  savage  barking  and 
sprang  toward  the  bank.     But  Ruth  did  not  lose 


THE   BATTLE  IN  THE   SNOW  119 

her  grip  on  his  collar,  and  her  hand  restrained 
him. 

"  Oh,  Tom !    Tom !  "  the  girl  cried. 

There  was  another  movement  in  the  bushes.  It 
was  between  Ruth  and  the  way  to  the  camp,  had 
she  been  so  foolish  as  to  try  to  reach  the  house  di- 
rectly through  the  woods.  But  she  did  face  up 
stream  again,  and  had  Reno  been  willing  to  ac- 
company her  she  would  have  run  as  hard  as  ever 
she  could  in  that  direction. 

"Come,  Reno!  Come,  good  dog!"  she 
gasped,  tugging  at  his  collar.  "  Let  it  alone — 
we  must  go  back " 

Reno  uttered  another  savage  growl  and  sprang 
upon  the  bank.  The  hard  packed  snow  crunched 
under  him.  There  sounded  a  scream  from  the 
brush — a  sound  that  Ruth  knew  well.  The  cata- 
mount was  really  at  hand — there  could  be  no  mis- 
taking that  awful  cry,  once  having  heard  it. 

The  dog  burst  through  the  bushes  with  such  a 
savage  clamor  that  Ruth  was  indeed  terrified. 
She  sprang  after  him,  however,  hoping  to  drag 
him  back  from  any  affray  with  the  panther. 
What  would  Tom  Cameron  say  if  anything  hap- 
pened to  his  brave  and  beautiful  Reno? 

It  was  past  the  girl's  power,  however,  to  stay 
the  mastiff.  With  angry  barks  he  broke  through 
the  barrier  and  entered  a  small  glade  not  a  stone's 
throw  from  the   bank  of  the   stream.       Before 


120  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

Ruth  reached  this  cleared  place  she  saw  the 
tracks  of  the  beast  which  had  so  startled  her. 
There  could  be  no  mistaking  the  round  impres- 
sions of  the  great,  padded  paws.  Unlike  the 
print  of  the  bear,  or  the  dog,  that  of  the  cat  shows 
no  marks  of  claws  unless  it  be  springing  at  its 
prey. 

And  now,  when  Reno  burst  into  the  open,  the 
panther  uttered  another  fierce  and  blood-chilling 
scream.  Ruth  noted  the  flash  of  the  great,  lithe 
body  as  the  beast  sprang  into  the  air.  Startled 
for  the  moment  by  the  on-rush  and  savage  baying 
of  the  dog,  the  panther  had  leaped  into  a  low- 
branching  cedar.  The  tree  shook  to  its  very  tip, 
and  to  the  ends  of  its  great  limbs.  There  the 
panther  crouched  upon  a  limb,  its  eyes  balefully 
glaring  down  upon  the  leaping,  growling  mastiff. 

As  Ruth  remembered  the  creature  from  the 
time  of  her  dreadful  ride  on  the  timber  cart  with 
the  so-called  Fred  Hatfield,  it  displayed  a  temper 
and  ferocity  that  was  not  to  be  mistaken.  Reno's 
sudden  onslaught  was  all  that  had  driven  it  to 
leap  into  the  tree.  But  there  it  crouched,  squall- 
ing and  tearing  the  hard  wood  into  splinters  with 
its  unsheathed  claws.  In  a  moment  it  would  leap 
down  upon  the  dog,  and  Ruth  was  horror- 
stricken. 

"Oh,  Reno!  Good  dog!"  she  moaned. 
"  Come  back!  come  back!" 


THE  BATTLE  IN  THE   SNOW  121 

The  mastiff  would  not  obey  and  in  a  moment 
the  huge  cat  sprang  out  of  the  tree  directly  upon 
Tom  Cameron's  faithful  companion.  Reno  was 
too  sharp  to  be  easily  caught,  however;  he  leaped 
aside  and  the  sabre-like  claws  of  the  panther 
missed  him.  Nor  was  the  dog  unwise  enough 
to  meet  the  panther  face  to  face. 

He  sprang  in  and  bit  the  cat  shrewdly,  and  then 
got  away  before  the  beast  wheeled,  yelling,  to 
strike  him.  Round  and  round  in  the  snow  they 
went,  so  fast  that  it  was  impossible  for  Ruth  to 
see  which  was  dog  and  which  was  cat,  their  paws 
throwing  up  a  cloud  of  snow-dust  that  almost  hid 
the  combatants. 

"Ah!"  cried  Ruth,  aloud.  "I've  missed  my 
chance,  I  should  have  tried  to  shoot  the  crea- 
ture while  it  was  in  the  tree." 

And  that  seemed  true  enough.  For  had  she 
been  the  best  of  shots  with  the  rifle,  it  looked 
now  as  though  she  was  as  likely  to  shoot  Reno  as 
the  panther  whilst  they  battled  in  the  snow. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

AN  APPEARANCE  AND  A  DISAPPEARANCE 

The  dog's  snapping  barks  and  the  squalling 
of  the  catamount  stilled  every  other  sound  to  Ruth 
Fielding's  ears.  She  had  fallen  back  to  the  edge 
of  the  clearing,  and  knew  not  what  to  do. 

She  feared  desperately  for  Reno's  safety;  but 
for  the  moment  did  not  know  what  she  might  do 
to  help  the  faithful  beast. 

She  tripped  upon  a  branch  and  fell  to  her  knees, 
and  the  butt  of  the  rifle  which  she  had  clung  to, 
struck  her  sharply  in  the  side. 

"  Ohl  if  I  had  only  learned  to  use  a  gun!" 
gasped  the  distracted  girl.  "Could  I  shoot 
straight  enough  to  do  any  good,  if  I  tried?  Or 
would  I  kill  the  poor  dog?  " 

At  the  moment  Reno  expressed  something  be- 
side rage  in  his  yelping.  He  sprang  out  of  the 
cloud  of  snow-spray  with  an  agonized  cry,  and 
Ruth  saw  that  there  was  blood  upon  his  jaws, 
and  a  great  gash  high  up  on  one  shoulder. 

"Oh!  the  poor  fellow!  Poor  Reno!  "  gasped 
Ruth  Fielding.  "  He  will  be  killed  by  that  hate- 
ful  brute." 

122 


AN  APPEARANCE  AND   A   DISAPPEARANCE      123 

Spurred  by  this  thought  she  did  not  rise  from 
her  knee,  but  threw  the  barrel  of  the  gun  forward. 
It  chanced  to  rest  in  the  crook  of  a  branch — the 
very  branch  over  which  she  had  tripped  the  mo- 
ment before.  She  drew  the  butt  of  the  gun  close 
to  her  shoulder;  she  drew  back  the  hammer  and 
tried  to  sight  along  the  barrel.  Suddenly  she 
saw  the  tawny  side  of  the  panther  directly  be- 
fore her — seemingly  it  was  at  the  end  of  the  rifle 
barrel. 

The  beast  was  crouching  to  leap.  Ruth  did 
not  know  where  Reno  then  was;  but  she  could 
hear  him  whimpering.  The  mastiff  had  be/^ 
sorely  hurt  and  the  panther  was  about  to  hnisn 
him. 

And  with  this  thought  in  her  mind,  Ruth 
steadied  the  rifle  as  best  she  could  and  pulled  the 
trigger.  The  sharp  explosion  and  the  shriek  of 
the  panther  seemed  simultaneous.  Through  the 
little  drift  of  smoke  she  saw  the  creature  spring; 
but  it  did  not  spring  far.  One  hind  leg  hung  use- 
less— there  was  a  patch  of  crimson  on  the  beaten 
snow — the  huge  cat,  snarling  and  yowling,  was 
going  around  and  around,  snapping  at  its  own 
leg. 

But  that  flurry  was  past  in  a  moment.  The 
snow-dust  subsided.  Ruth  had  sprung  to  her 
feet,  dropping  the  rifle,  delighted  for  the  mo- 
ment that  she  should  have  shot  the  panther. 


124  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

But  she  little  knew  the  nature  and  courage 
of  the  beast.  On  three  legs  only  the  huge 
cat  writhed  across  the  clearing,  having  spied  the 
girl;  and  now,  with  a  fierce  scream  of  anger,  it 
crouched  to  spring  upon  Ruth.  She  seemed  de- 
voted to  the  panther's  revenge,  for  she  was  smit- 
ten with  that  terror  which  shackles  voice  and 
limb. 

"  Oh,  Reno!  Reno!"  she  whispered;  but  the 
sound  did  not  pass  her  own  lips.  The  dog  was 
not  in  sight.  He  lay  somewhere  in  the  bushes, 
licking  his  wounds.  The  fierce  panther  had 
bested  him,  and  now  crouched,  ready  to  spring 
upon  the  helpless  girl. 

With  a  snarl  of  pain  and  rage  the  beast  leaped 
at  her.  Its  broken  leg  caused  it  to  fall  short  by 
several  yards,  and  the  pain  of  the  injured  limb, 
when  it  landed,  caused  the  catamount  to  howl 
again,  and  tear  up  the  snow  in  its  agony. 

Ruth  could  not  run;  she  was  rooted  to  the  spot. 
She  had  bravely  shot  at  the  creature  once.  Bet- 
ter had  it  been  for  her  had  she  not  used  the  rifle 
at  all.  She  had  only  turned  the  wrath  of  the  sav- 
age cat  from  Reno  to  herself. 

And  Ruth  realized  that  she  was  now  its  help- 
less quarry.  She  could  neither  fight  nor  run. 
She  sank  back  into  the  snow  and  awaited  the  next 
leap  of  the  panther. 

At  this  very  moment  of  despair — when  death 


AN  APPEARANCE  AND   A   DISAPPEARANCE      125 

seemed  inevitable — there  was  a  crash  in  the 
bushes  behind  her  and  a  figure  broke  through  and 
flung  itself  past  her.  A  high,  shrill,  excited 
voice  cried: 

"  Give  me  that  gun!     Is  it  loaded?  " 

Ruth  could  not  speak,  but  the  questioner  saw 
instantly  that  there  were  cartridges  in  the  maga- 
zine of  Tom  Cameron's  gun.  He  leaped  up- 
right and  faced  the  crouching  cat. 

The  panther,  with  a  fearful  snarl,  had  to 
change  the  direction  of  its  leap.  It  sprang  into 
the  air,  all  four  paws  spread  and  its  terrible 
claws  unsheathed.  But  its  breast  was  displayed, 
too,  to  the  new  victim  of  its  rage. 

Bang! 

The  rifle  spat  a  yard  of  fire,  which  almost 
scorched  the  creature's  breast.  The  impact  of 
the  bullet  really  drove  the  cat  backward — or  else 
the  agony  of  its  death  throes  turned  the  heavy 
body  from  its  victim.  It  threw  a  back  somer- 
sault and  landed  again  in  the  snow,  tearing  it  up 
for  yards  around,  the  crimson  tide  from  its 
wounds  spattering  everything  thereabout. 

"Oh,  it's  dead!"  cried  Ruth,  with  clasped 
hands,  when  suddenly  the  beast's  limbs  stiffened. 
"You've  killed  it!" 

Then  she  had  a  chance  to  look  at  the  person 
who  had  saved  her. 

"Fred   Hatfield!"   she    cried.     "Is   it  you,? 


126  RUTH  FIELDING  AT  SNOW  CAMP 

Or,  who  are  you?  for  they  all  say  Fred  Hatfield 
is  dead  and  buried." 

"  It  doesn't  matter  who  I  am,  Ruth  Fielding," 
said  the  strange  lad,  in  no  pleasant  tone. 

"  Never  mind.  Come  and  see  Mr.  Cameron. 
Come  to  the  camp.     He  will  help  you " 

"  I  don't  want  his  help,"  replied  the  boy. 
"  I'll  help  myself — with  this,"  and  he  tapped  the 
barrel  of  the  rifle. 

"  But  that  belongs  to  Tom " 

"  He'll  have  to  lend  it  to  me,  then,"  declared 
the  boy.  "  I  tell  you,  I  am  not  going  to  be 
bound  by  anybody.  I'm  free  to  do  as  I  please. 
You  can  go  back  to  that  camp.  There's  nothing 
to  hurt  you  now." 

At  the  moment  Ruth  heard  voices  shouting 
from  the  frozen  stream.  The  boys  were  skating 
back  toward  the  pond,  and  had  heard  the  rifle 
shots, 

"  Oh,  wait  till  they  come !  "  Ruth  cried. 

"  No.  I'm  off — and  don't  any  of  you  try  to 
stop  me,"  said  the  boy,  threateningly. 

He  slipped  on  the  snowshoes  which  he  had 
kicked  off  when  he  sprang  for  the  rifle,  and  at 
once  started  away  from  the  clearing. 

"Don't  go!"  begged  Ruth.  "Oh,  dear! 
wait!      Let  me  thank  you." 

"  I  don't  want  your  thanks.     I  hate  the  whole 


AN  APPEARANCE  AND   A   DISAPPEARANCE      127 

lot  of  you  I  "  returned  the  boy,  looking  back  over 
his  shoulder. 

The  next  moment  he  had  disappeared,  and 
Ruth  was  left  alone.  She  made  a  detour  of  the 
spot  where  the  dead  panther  lay  and  called  to 
Reno.  The  mastiff  dragged  himself  from  under 
a  bush.  He  was  badly  cut  up,  but  licked  her 
hand  when  she  knelt  beside  him. 

"Hello!  who's  shooting  over  there?"  cried 
Tom  Cameron  from  the  stream. 

"  Oh,  Tom !  Tom !  Come  and  help  me !  M 
replied  Ruth,  and  in  half  a  minute  the  three  boys, 
having  kicked  off  their  skates,  were  in  the  glade. 

"  Merciful  goodness !  "  gasped  Bob  Steele. 
"  See  what  a  beast  that  is !  " 

Tom,  with  a  cry  of  pain,  dashed  forward  and 
fell  beside  Ruth  to  examine  the  mastiff. 

"My  poor  dog!"  he  cried.  "Is  he  badly 
hurt?     What's  happened  to  him?" 

"  Did  she  shoot  that  panther?  "  demanded  Isa- 
dore  Phelps.     "Look  at  it,  Tom!" 

"Reno  isn't  so  badly  hurt,  Tom,"  Ruth  de- 
clared. "  I  believe  he  has  a  broken  leg  and 
these  cuts.  He  dashed  right  in  and  attacked  the 
panther,     What  a  brave  dog  he  is!  " 

"But  he  never  killed  the  beast,"  said  Bob. 
"Who  did  that?" 

"Who  was  shooting  here?     Where's  the  gun, 


128         RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

Ruth?"  Tom  demanded,  now  giving  some  atten- 
tion to  the  dead  animal. 

Ruth  related  the  affair  in  a  few  words,  while 
she  helped  Tom  bind  up  Reno's  wounds.  The 
young  master  tore  up  his  handkerchiefs  to  do  duty 
as  bandages  for  the  wounded  dog. 

"  We'll  carry  him  to  camp — we  can  do  it,  easily 
enough,  old  man,"  said  Bob  Steele. 

"And  what  about  the  panther?  Don1t  we 
want  his  pelt?"  cried  Isadore. 

"  We'll  send  Long  Jerry  after  that,"  Tom 
said.  u  I  wish  that  fellow  hadn't  run  away  with 
my  rifle.     But  you  couldn't  help  it,  Ruth." 

"  He  certainly  is  a  bad  boy,"  declared  the  girl. 
11  Yet — somehow — I  am  sorry  for  him.  He  must 
be  all  alone  in  these  woods.  Something  will  hap- 
pen to  him." 

"  Never  mind.  We  can  forgive  him,  and  hope 
that  he'll  pull  through  all  right,  after  he  saved 
you,  Ruthie,"  Tom  said.  "  Come  on,  now,  Bob- 
bins.    Lend  a  hand  with  the  poor  dog." 

Tom  had  removed  his  coat  and  in  that,  for  a 
blanket,  they  carried  Reno  through  the  woods  to 
the  camp.  It  was  a  hard  journey,  for  in  places 
the  snow  had  drifted  and  was  quite  soft.  But  in 
less  than  an  hour  they  arrived  at  the  lodge. 

The  men  had  come  in  with  the  wood  by  that 
time,  and  Mr.  Cameron  with  them.  Mrs.  Mur- 
chiston  and  the  girls  were  greatly  worried  over 


AN  APPEARANCE  AND  A   DISAPPEARANCE      129 

Ruth's  absence  and  the  absence,  too,  of  the  three 
boys.  But  the  death  of  the  catamount,  and  the 
safety  of  all,  quickly  put  a  better  face  upon  the 
situation. 

Ruth  was  praised  a  good  bit  for  her  bravery. 
And  Mr.  Cameron  said: 

"  There's  something  in  that  poor  boy  whom 
we  tried  to  return  to  his  friends — if  the  Hatfields 
are  his  friends.  He  does  not  lack  courage,  that 
is  sure — courage  of  a  certain  kind,  anyway.  I 
must  see  to  his  business  soon.  I  believe  the  Hat- 
fields  live  within  twenty  miles  of  this  place,  and 
in  a  day  or  two  I  will  ride  over  and  see  them." 

"Oh!  let  us  all  go,  father,"  urged  Helen. 
"  Can't  we  go  in  the  sleighs  we  came  over  in  from 
Scarboro?" 

"  Don't  take  them,  sir,"  said  Mrs.  Murchiston. 
11 1  shan't  feel  safe  for  them  again  until  we  get 
out  of  these  woods." 

"Why,  Mis'  Murchiston,"  drawled  Long 
Jerry,  who  had  come  into  the  hall  with  a  great 
armful  of  wood,  "  there  ain't  a  mite  of  danger 
now.  That  panther's  killed — deader'n  last 
Thanksgivin's  turkey.  There  may  not  be  another 
around  here  for  half  a  score  of  years." 

"  But  they  say  there  are  bears  in  the  woods," 
cried  the  governess. 

"  Aw,  shucks ! "  returned  the  woodsman. 
"What's  a  b'ar?     B'ar's  is  us'ally  as  skeery  as 


130         RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

rabbits,  unless  they  are  mighty  hungry.  And  ye 
don't  often  meet  a  hungry  bear  this  time  o'  year. 
They  are  mostly  housed  up  for  the  winter  in  some 
warm  hole." 

"  But  what  would  these  girls  do  if  they  met  a 
bear,  Mr.  Todd?"  asked  Mr.  Cameron,  laugh- 
ing. 

"  Why,  this  here  leetle  Ruth  Fielding  gal,  she'd 
have  pluck  enough  to  shoot  him,  I  reckon," 
chuckled  Long  Jerry.  "  And  she  wouldn't  be 
the  first  girl  that's  shot  a  full  growed  b'ar  right 
in  this  neighborhood." 

"  I  thought  you  said  there  wasn't  any  around 
here,  Jerry?"  cried  Helen. 

"  This  happened  some  time  ago,  Miss,"  re- 
turned the  woodsman.  "And  it  happened  right 
over  yon  at  Bill  Bennett's  farm — not  four  mile 
from  here.  Sally  Bennett  was  a  plucky  one,  now 
I  tell  ye.  And  pretty — wal,  I  was  a  jedge  of  fe- 
male loveliness  in  them  days,"  went  on  Long  Jerry. 
with  a  sly  grin.  "  Ye  see,  I  was  lookin'  'em  all 
over,  tryin'  to  make  up  my  mind  which  one  of 
the  gals  I  should  pick  for  my  partner  through 
life.  And  Sally  was  about  the  best  of  the 
bunch." 

"  Why  didn't  you  pick  her  then?  "  asked  Tom. 

"  She  got  in  her  hand  pickin'  first,"  chuckled 
Jerry.  "  And  she  picked  a  feller  from  town. 
Fac'  is,  I  was  so  long  a-pickin'  that  I  never  got 


AN   APPEARANCE   AND   A    DISAPPEARANCE      131 

nary  wife  at  all,  so  have  lived  all  my  life  an  old 
bachelder." 

"  But  let's  hear  about  Sally  and  the  bear,"  pro- 
posed Ruth,  eagerly,  knowing  what  a  resourceful 
story-teller  Long  Jerry  was. 

"  Come  Jerry,  sit  down  and  let's  have  it," 
agreed  Mr.  Cameron,  and  the  party  of  young 
folk  drew  up  chairs,  before  the  fire.  Long  Jerry 
squatted  down  in  his  usual  manner  on  the  hearth, 
and  the  story  was  begun. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

LONG  JERRY'S  STORY 

"Oi/  man  Bennett,"  began  Jerry  Todd, 
"  warn't  a  native  of  this  neck  o'  woods.  He 
come  up  from  Jarsey,  or  some  such  place,  and 
bringed  his  fam'bly  with  him,  and  Sally  Bennett. 
She  was  his  sister,  and  as  he  was  a  pretty  up- 
standin'  man,  so  was  she  a  tall,  well-built  gal. 
She  sartain  made  a  hit  up  here  around  Scarboro 
and  along  Rollin'  River. 

"  But  she  wasn't  backwoods  bred,  and  the 
other  girls  said  she  was  timid  and  afraid  of  her 
shadder,"  chuckled  Long  Jerry.  "  She  warn't 
afraid  of  the  boys,  and  mebbe  that's  why  the  other 
gals  said  sharp  things  about  her,"  pursued  the 
philosophical  backwoodsman.  "  You  misses 
know  more  about  that  than  I  do — sure ! 

"  Howsomever,  come  the  second  spring  the 
Bennetts  had  been  up  here,  Mis'  Bennett,  old 
Bill's  wife,  was  called  down  to  see  her  ma,  that 
was  sick,  they  said,  and  that  left  Miss  Sally  to 
keep  house.  Come  the  first  Saturday  thereafter 
and  Bennett,  he  had  to  go  to  Scarboro  to  mill. 

"You  know  jest  how  lonesome  it  is  up  here 
132 


LONG  JERRY'S  STORY  133 

now;  'twas  a  whole  sight  wuss  in  them  days. 
There  warn't  no  telephone,  and  it  was  more  than 
'  two  hoots  and  a  holler,'  as  the  feller  said,  be- 
twixt neighbors. 

"But  Old  Bill's  going  to  mill  left  only  Miss 
Sally  and  the  three  little  boys  at  home.  Bennett 
had  cleared  a  piece  around  the  house,  scratched 
him  a  few  hills  of  corn  betwixt  the  stumps  the 
year  before,  and  this  spring  was  tryin'  to  tear 
out  the  roots  and  small  stumps  with  a  pair  o' 
steers   and   a   tam-harrer. 

"  So,  from  the  door  of  the  cabin  he'd  built, 
Sally  could  see  the  virgin  forest  all  about  her, 
while  she  was  a-movin'  about  the  room  getting 
dinner  for  the  young  5uns.  While  she  was  at 
work  the  littlest  feller,  Johnny,  who  was  building 
a  cobhouse  on  the  floor,  yelps  up  like  a  terrier: 

11 '  Aunt  Sally !  Aunt  Sally !  Looker  that  big 
dog!"^ 

"  Miss  Sally,  she  turns  around,  an'  what  does 
she  see  but  a  big  brown  bear — oh,  a  whackin'  big 
feller ! — with  his  very  nose  at  the  open  door," 

"Oh!"   squealed  Helen. 

"  How  awful!  "  cried  Belle  Tingley. 

"  A  mighty  onexpected  visitor,"  chuckled 
Jerry.  "  But,  if  she  was  scar't,  she  warn't  plumb 
stunned  in  her  tracks — no,  sir!  She  gave  a  leap 
for  the  door  and  she  swung  it  shut  right  against 
Mr.  B'ar's  nose.     And  then  she  barred  it." 


134  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

"  Brave  girl,"  said  Mrs.  Murchiston. 

"  I  reckon  so,  ma'am,"  agreed  the  guide. 
"And  then  she  remembered  that  Tom  and 
Charlie,  the  other  two  boys,  were  gone  down  the 
hill  to  a  spring  for  a  bucket  of  fresh  water. 

"  There  were  two  doors  to  the  cabin,  directly 
opposite  each  other,  and  they'd  both  been  open. 
The  spring  was  reached  from  the  other  door  and 
Miss  Sally  flew  to  it  and  saw  the  boys  just  comin' 
up  the  hill. 

u '  Run,  boys,  run!'  she  screams.  'Never 
mind  the  water!  Drop  it  and  run!  There's  a 
b'ar  in  the  yard !     Run!  Run!' 

"  And  them  boys  did  run,  but  they  held  fast  to 
their  bucket  and  brought  most  of  the  water  inter 
the  house  with  'em.  Then  Miss  Sally  barred 
that  door,  too,  and  they  all  went  to  the  winder 
and  peeped  out.  There  was  Mister  B'ar 
snoopin'  about  the  yard,  and  lookin'  almost  as 
big  as  one  of  the  steers. 

"  He  went  a-sniffin'  about  the  yard,  smellin'  of 
everything  like  b'ars  do  when  they're  forragin', 
s'archin'  for  somethin'  ter  tempt  his  appetite. 
Suddenly  he  stood  stock  still,  raised  his  big  head, 
and  sniffed  the  air  keen-like.  Then  he  growled 
and  went  straight  for  the  pig-pen. 

"  *  Oh,  the  pigs !  the  pigs !  '  squealed  one  of  the 
boys.     *  The  nice  pigs !     He'll  eat  'em  all  up ! ' 

"  And  there  was  a  good  reason  for  their  takin' 


LONG  JERRY'S   STORY  135 

on,"  said  Jerry,  "  for  their  next  winter's  meat  was 
in  that  pen — a  sow  and  five  plump  little  porkers. 

"  '  Oh,  Aunty  Sally,'  cries  one  of  the  bigger 
boys.  i  What  shall  we  do?  What'll  father  say 
when  he  comes  back  and  finds  the  pigs  killed?  ' 

uYe  see,"  continued  Long  Jerry,  shaking  his 
head,  "  it  was  a  tragedy  to  them.  You  folks 
livin'  in  town  don't  understand  what  it  means  for 
a  farmer  to  lose  his  pigs.  Old  Bennett  warn't 
no  hunter,  and  wild  meat  ain't  like  hog-meat, 
anyway.  If  the  b'ar  got  those  porkers  them 
young  'uns  would  go  mighty  hungry  the  next  win- 
ter. 

"  Miss  Sally,  she  knew  that,  all  right,  and 
when  the  boy  says :  *  What  shall  we  do  ?  '  she 
made  up  her  mind  pretty  quick  that  she'd  got  to 
try  ter  do  sumpin' — yes,  sir-ree !  She  run  for  her 
brother's  rifle  that  hung  over  the  other  door. 

"  *  I'm  goin'  to  try  and  shoot  that  b'ar,  boys,' 
says  she,  jest  as  firm  as  she  could  speak. 

"  *  Oh,  Aunt  Sally!  you  can't,'  says  Tom,  the 
oldest. 

"  - 1  don't  know  whether  I  can  or  not  till  I  try,' 
says  she.  She  felt  like  Miss  Ruthie  did — eh?" 
and  the  long  guide  chuckled.  "  No  tellin'  whether 
you  kin  do  a  thing,  or  not,  till  you  have  a  whack 
at  it. 

"  *  Don't  you  try  it,  Aunt  Sally,'  says  Charlie. 
1  He  might  kill  you.' 


136  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"  *  I  won't  give  him  a  chance  at  me/  says  she. 
'Now  boys,  let  me  out  and  mind  jest  what  I  say. 
If  anything  does  happen  to  me,  don't  you  dars't 
come  out,  but  go  in  and  bar  the  door  again,  and 
stay  till  your  father  comes  back.  Now,  promise 
me!' 

"She  made  'em  promise  before  she  ventured 
out  of  the  door,  and  then  she  left  'em  at  the 
open  door,  jest  about  breathless  with  suspense  and 
terror,  while  Miss  Sally  sped  across  the  yard  to- 
ward the  pig-pen.  Mister  Ba'r,  he'd  torn  down 
some  of  the  pine  slabs  at  one  corner  and  got  into 
the  pen.  The  old  sow  was  singin'  out  like  all 
Kildee,  and  the  little  fellers  was  a-squealin'  to  the 
top  o'  their  bent.  The  b'ar  smacked  one  o'  the 
juicy  little  fellers  and  begun  to  lunch  off'n  him 
jest  as  Miss  Sally  come  to  the  other  end  o'  the 
pen. 

"  His  back  was  towards  her  and  he  didn't  notice 
nothin'  but  his  pork  vittles,"  pursued  Long  Jerry. 
"  She  crept  up  beside  him,  poked  the  barrel  of  the 
Winchester  through  the  bars  of  the  pen,  rested  it 
on  one  bar,  and  pulled  the  trigger.  The  ball  went 
clear  through  the  old  feller's  head! 

"  But  it  takes  more'n  one  lucky  shot  to  kill  a 
full  grown  brown  b'ar,"  Jerry  said,  shaking  his 
head.  "  He  turned  like  a  flash,  and  with  a  horrid 
roar,  made  at  her,  dropping  the  pig.  His  huge 
carcass  smashing  against  the  pen  fence,  snapped 


LONG  JERRY'S   STORY  137 

a  white-oak  post  right  off   at  the  ground,   and 
felled  two  lengths  of  the  fence. 

"  But  Miss  Sally  didn't  give  up.  She  backed 
away,  but  she  kept  shootin'  until  she  had  put  three 
more  balls  into  his  big  carcass.  He  sprung 
through  the  broke-down  fence  to  get  at  her;  but 
jest  as  he  got  outside,  the  blood  spouted  out  of  his 
mouth,  and  he  fell  down,  coughing  and  dying. 
'Twas  all  over  in  ten  seconds,  then." 

"  My  goodness !  "  gasped  Jennie  Stone.  "  How 
dreadful." 

"  But  wasn't  she  a  brave  girl?  "  cried  Helen. 

"  Not  a  bit  braver  than  Ruthie,"  said  her  twin> 
stoutly. 

"  I  could  almost  forgive  you  for  spoiling  our 
taffy  after  that,  Master  Tom,"  declared  Helen. 
"  Is  that  all  the  story,  Mr.  Todd?  "  she  added,  as 
the  long  guide  rose  up  to  go. 

"  Pretty  near  all,  I  reckon,  Missy,"  he  returned. 
"  Nobody  didn't  never  say  Sally  Bennett  was 
afraid,  after  she'd  saved  Bill's  meat  for  him. 
And  that  oF  b'ar  pelt  was  a  coverin'  on  her  bed 
till  she  was  married,  I  reckon.  But  things  like 
that  don't  happen  around  here  now-a-days. 
B'ars  ain't  so  common — and  mebbe  gals  ain't  so 
brave,"  and  he  went  away,  chuckling. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 


"THE  AMAZON  MARCH" 


There  had  been  no  open  battle  between  the 
girls  and  the  boys  over  the  spoiled  taffy;  but  that 
night,  when  the  six  friends  from  Briarwood  Hall 
retired  to  their  big  sleeping  room,  they  seriously 
discussed  what  course  they  should  take  with  the 
three  scamps  who  had  played  them  so  mean  a 
trick;  for  even  Helen  admitted  that  one  boy  was 
probably  as  guilty  as  another. 

"  And  that  Isadore  Phelps  had  the  cheek  to 
ask  me  how  I  liked  the  taffy !  "  exclaimed  Heavy. 
"I  could  have  shaken  him!  " 

"  The  panther  scare  spoiled  their  '  gloat '  over 
us,  that's  a  fact,"  said  Madge  Steele.  "  But  I 
intimated  to  that  brother  of  mine  that  I  proposed 
to  see  the  matter  squared  up  before  we  left  Snow 
Camp." 

"  I'd  like  to  know  how  we'll  get  the  best  of 
them?"  complained  Lluella. 

"That's  so!  Mrs.  Murchiston  won't  let  us 
have  any  freedom,"  said  Belle.  "  She's  on  the 
watch." 

138 


"THE  AMAZON   MARCH"  139 

11 1  expect  she  would  object  if  we  tried  anything 
very  *  brash,'  "  said  Heavy.  "  We  have  got  to 
be  sly  about  it." 

"  I  do  not  know  how  much  at  fault  Tom  and 
Mr.  Steele  are,"  said  Ruth,  quietly.  "  But  so 
much  has  happened  since  they  spoiled  the  candy, 
that  I  had  all  but  forgotten  the  trick." 

"There  now!  Ruth  will  forgive,  of  course," 
said  Helen,  sharply.  "  But  I  won't.  They  ought 
to  be  paid  back." 

"  Wouldn't  it  be  best  to  just  cut  them  right  out 
of  our  good  times?  "  suggested  Belle. 

"  But  won't  that  cut  us  out  of  their  good 
times?"  urged  Heavy.  uAnd  boys  always  do 
think  up  better  fun  than  girls." 

"  I  never  would  admit  it! "  cried  Madge. 

"  You  always  have  been  a  regular  Tom-boy, 
Jennie,"  said  Lluella. 

"  You  ought  to  be  ashamed  to  say  such  a  thing, 
Miss  Stone,"  added  Belle. 

"Well,  don't  they?"  demanded  the  unabashed 
stout  girl. 

"  Then  it's  because  we  girls  don't  put  our- 
selves out  to  think  up  new  and  nice  things  to  do," 
proclaimed  Madge  Steele. 

"  Perhaps  girls  are  not  as  naturally  inventive 
as  boys,"  suggested  Ruth,  timidly. 

"  I  won't  admit  it!  "  cried  Madge. 

"  At  least,"  said  the  girl  from  the  Red  Mill, 


140  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"  we  don't  want  to  do  anything  mean  to  them  just 
because  they  were  mean  to  us." 

"Why  not?"  demanded  Belle,  in  wonder. 

"  That  wouldn't  be  nice — nor  any  fun,"  de- 
clared Ruth,  firmly.     "  A  joke — yes." 

"  Do  you  call  it  a  joke  on  us — spoiling  our  taffy 
and  stealing  the  nutmeats?  "  wailed  Heavy. 

"What  else  was  it?  It  was  a  joke  to  them. 
There  was  a  sting  to  it  for  us.  We  must  pay 
them  back  in  like  manner,  but  without  being  mean 
about  it." 

11  Well  now!  "  cried  Helen.  "  I'd  like  to  see 
you  do  it,  Ruth. 

"  Perhaps  we  can  think  of  a  plan,"  said  Ruth, 
gaily.  "  I  for  one  shall  not  lose  any  sleep  over  it. 
But  if  you  want  to  pay  them  off  by  showing  how 
much  we  disapprove  of  their  actions,  and  have 
nothing  to  do  with  their  schemes  to-morrow,  I  will 
agree." 

"  We'll  begin  that  way,"  said  Madge  Steele, 
promptly.  "  Treat  them  in  a  dignified  manner 
and  refuse  to  join  in  any  games  with  them.  That 
is  what  we  can  do." 

"  Oh,  well,"  sighed  the  irrepressible  Heavy. 
"  We're  bound  to  have  a  dreadfully  slow  day, 
then.     Good-night!" 

It  began  by  being  a  gray  day,  too.  The  sun 
was  hidden  and  the  wind  sighed  mournfully  in  the 


"THE  AMAZON   MARCH"  141 

pines.  Long  Jerry  cocked  his  head  knowingly 
and  said: 

"  It's  borne  in  on  me,  youngsters,  that  you'll  see 
a  bit  of  hard  weather  before  the  New  Year — that 
it  do." 

"A  snowstorm,  Jerry?"  queried  Helen  Cam- 
eron, clapping  her  hands.     "  Oh,  goody!" 

"  Dunno  about  it's  being  so  everlastin'  good," 
returned  the  guide.  "  You  never  see  a  big  snow 
up  in  these  woods;  did  ye?  " 

"  No,  Jerry ;  but  I  want  to.     Don't  you  Ruth  ?  " 

"  I  love  the  snow,"  admitted  Ruth  Fielding. 
"  But  perhaps  a  snowstorm  in  the  wilderness  is 
different  from  a  storm  in  more  civilized  commu- 
nities." 

"And  you're  a  good  guesser,"  grunted  Long 
Jerry.  "  Anyhow,  unless  I'm  much  mistook, 
you'll  have  means  of  knowin'  afore  long." 

"  Then,"  said  Helen,  to  Ruth,  "  we  must  get 
the  balsam  to-day  for  our  pillows.  It  won't  snow 
yet  awhile,  will  it,  Jerry?" 

"  May  not  snow  at  all  to-day,"  replied  the 
guide.  "  This  weather  we've  had  for  some  days 
has  been  storm-breeding,  and  it's  been  long  comin\ 
It  won't  be  soon  past,  I  reckon." 

This  conversation  occurred  right  after  break- 
fast. The  boys  had  seen  by  the  way  the  girls 
acted  that  there  was  "  something  in  the  wind." 


142  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

The  girls  ignored  Tom,  Bob  and  Isadore  as  they 
chatted  at  the  breakfast  table,  and  at  once  they 
went  about  their  own  small  affairs,  leaving  the 
boys  by  themselves. 

Tom  and  his  mates  discussed  some  plan  for  a 
few  minutes  and  then  Tom  sang  out:  " Who'll 
go  sliding?  There's  a  big  bob-sled  in  the  barn 
and  we  fixed  it  up  yesterday  morning.  It  will 
hold  the  whole  crowd.  How  long  will  it  take  you 
girls  to  get  ready?  " 

Helen  turned  her  back  on  him.  Ruth  looked 
doubtful,  and  flushed;  but  Madge  Steele  ex- 
claimed: "You  can  go  sliding  alone,  little  boy. 
We  certainly  sha'n't  accompany  you." 

"  Aw,  speak  for  yourself,  Miss,"  growled  her 
brother.  Then  Bob  turned  deliberately  to  Helen 
and  asked:  "  Will  you  go  sliding,  Helen?  " 

"  No,  sir!  "  snapped  Helen. 

"Aw,  let  'em  alone,  Bob,"  said  Isadore. 
"  Who  wants  'em,  anyway?  " 

Jennie  Stone  would  have  replied,  only  Belle  and 
Lluella  shook  her.  It  took  two  girls  to  shake 
Heavy  satisfactorily.  And  the  entire  six  ignored 
the  three  boys,  who  went  off  growling  among 
themselves. 

"  Just  for  a  little  old  mess  of  candy,"  snorted 
Isadore,  who  was  the  last  to  leave  the  house. 

"That's  the  way  to  treat  them!"  declared 
Madge,  tossing  her  head,  when  the  boys  had  gone. 


THE  AMAZON   MARCH" 


143 


"I  don't  know,"  said  Ruth  slowly.  "We 
might  be  glad  to  have  them  help  us  get  the  pine- 
needles.  " 

"  I  believe  you  are  too  soft-hearted,  Ruth  Field- 
ing," declared  Belle  Tingley. 

"  It's  because  she  likes  Tom  so  well,"  said 
Lluella,  slily. 

"  Well,  Tom  never  did  so  mean  a  thing  before 
yesterday,"  said  Tom's  sister,  sharply. 

"  Boys  are  all  alike  when  they  get  together," 
said  Heavy.  "  It  spoils  'em  awfully  to  flock  in 
crowds." 

"What  does  it  do  to  girls?"  demanded  Ruth, 
smiling. 

"  Gives  them  pluck,"  declared  Madge  Steele. 
11  We've  got  to  keep  the  boys  down — that's  the 
only  way  to  manage  them." 

"  My,  my!"  chuckled  Jennie  Stone,  the  stout 
girl.  "  Madge  is  going  to  be  a  regular  suf- 
fragette; isn't  she?  " 

"  Well,  I  guess  girls  can  flock  by  themselves 
and  have  just  as  good  times  without  their  broth- 
ers, as  with  them." 

But  Ruth  and  Helen  looked  more  than  doubt- 
ful at  this  point.  They  knew  that  Tom  Cam- 
eron, at  least,  had  been  arloyal  friend  and  mate 
on  many  a  day  of  pleasure.  They  couldn't  bear 
to  hear  him  abused. 

But  the  girls  felt  that  they  really  had  reason 


144  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

for  showing  the  boys  they  were  offended.  Soon 
after  the  departure  of  Tom  and  his  friends  the 
girls  started  out  with  bags  to  gather  the  balsam 
for  the  pillows.  On  the  back  porch  they  sat 
down  to  put  on  the  snowshoes  which,  by  this 
time,  they  were  all  able  to  use  with  some  pro- 
ficiency. The  three  boys,  snowballing  behind 
the  barn,  espied  them. 

"  Hullo!  "  bawled  Busy  Izzy.  "  Here  come 
the  Amazons.  They're  going  on  their  own  hook 
now — haven't  any  use  for  boys  at  all." 

He  threw  a  snowball;  but  Tom  tripped  him 
into  a  bank  of  snow  and  spoiled  his  aim.  "  None 
o'  that,  Izzy!"  he  commanded. 

"  Let  'em  alone,"  growled  Bob  Steele.  "  If 
they  want  to  flock  by  themselves,  who  cares?" 

"Not  I!"  declared  Izzy.  "Look  at  the 
Amazon  March.  My,  my!  if  they  should  see 
a  squirrel,  or  a  rabbit,  they'd  come  running  back 
in  a  hurry.  They'd  think  it  was  another  panther. 
Oh,  my!" 

But  the  girls  paid  no  attention  to  his  gibes  and 
shuffled  on  into  the  woods.  Helen  suddenly  saw 
a  snow  flake  upon  her  jacket  sleeve.  She  called 
Ruth's  attention  to  it. 

"  Maybe  the  snow  will  come  quicker  than  Long 
Jerry  thought,"  declared  the  girl  from  the  Red 
Mill.     "  See !  there's  another." 


"THE  AMAZON   MARCH"  145 

"  Oh,  pshaw!  what's  a  little  snow?"  scoffed 
Belle  Tingley. 

But  the  flakes  came  faster  and  faster.  Great 
feathery  flakes  they  were  at  first.  The  girls 
went  on,  laughing  and  chatting,  with  never  a 
thought  that  harm  could  befall  'them  through 
the  gathering  of  these  fleecy  droppings  from  the 
lowering  clouds. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

BESIEGED  BY  THE  STORM  KING 

Tom  Cameron  and  his  two  friends  weve  so 
busy  setting  up  a  target  and  throwing  iced  snow- 
balls at  it,  that  they  barely  noticed  the  first  big 
flakes  of  the  storm.  But  by  and  by  these  flakes 
passed  and  then  a  wind  of  deadly  chill  swept 
down  upon  the  camp  and  with  it  fine  pellets  of 
snow — not  larger  than  pin-points — but  which 
blinded  one  and  hid  all  objects  within  ten  feet. 

"  Come  on!"  roared  Bob.  "This  is  no  fum 
Let's  beat  it  to  the  house," 

"  Oh,  it  can't  last  long  this  way,"  said  Isa- 
dore  "Phelps.  "  My  goodness !  did  you  ever  see 
it  snow  harder  in  your  life?" 

"  That  I  never  did,"  admitted  Tom.  "I 
wonder  if  the  girls  have  come  back?  " 

"  If  they  haven't,"  said  Bob,  "  they'd  better 
wait  where  they  are  until  this  flurry  is  over." 

"  I  hope  they  have  returned,"  muttered  Tom, 
as  they  made  their  way  toward  the  rear  of  Snow 
Camp. 

The  snow  came  faster  and  faster,  and  thicker 
140 


BESEIGED   BY   THE   STORM   KING  147 

and  thicker.  Bob  bumped  square  into  the  side 
of  one  of  the  out-sheds,  and  roared  because  he 
found  blood  flowing  from  his  nose. 

"  What  do  you  say  about  this?  "  he  bellowed. 
"How  do  we  know  we're  going  right?'' 

'"Here!"  cried  Isadore.  "Where  are  you 
fellows?  I  don't  want  to  get  lost  in  the  back 
yard." 

Tom  found  him  (he  had  already  seized  the 
half-blinded  Bob  by  the  arm)  and  the  three, 
arm  in  arm,  made  their  way  cautiously  to  the 
kitchen  porch.  They  burst  in  on  Janey  and 
Mary  with  a  whoop. 

"  Have  the  girls  got  back? "  cried  Tom, 
eagerly. 

"  I  couldn't  tell  ye,  Master  Tom,"  said  Mary. 
"  But  if  they  haven't  come  in,  by  the  looks  of 
you  boys,  they'd  better." 

Tom  did  not  stop  to  remove  the  snow,  but 
rushed  into  the  great  central  hall  which  was  used 
as  a   general  sitting  room. 

"  Where's  Helen — and  Ruth — and  the  rest 
of  them?"  he  demanded.^ 

"  Why,  Thomas !  you're  all  over  snow,"  said 
Mr.  Cameron,  comfortably  reading  his  paper  be- 
fore the  fire,  in  smoking  jacket  and  slippers. 

"  Is  it  snowing?"  queried  Mrs.  Murchiston, 
from  the  warmest  nook  beside  the  hearth. 
"  Aren't  the  girls  out  with  you,  Tom?  " 


148  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

"What's  the  matter,  my  son?"  demanded  his 
father,  getting  up  quickly.  "What  has  hap- 
pened?" 

"  I  don't  know  that  anything  has  happened," 
said  Tom,  swallowing  a  big  lump  in  his  throat, 
and  trying  to  speak  calmly.  "  The  girls  have 
not  been  with  us.  They  went  into  the  woods 
somewhere  to  get  stuff  for  their  pillows.  And 
it  is  snowing  harder  than  I  ever  knew  it  to  snow 
before." 

"Oh,  Tom!"  gasped  the  governess. 

"  Come !  we'll  go  out  and  see  about  this  at 
once,"  cried  his  father,  and  began  to  get  into  his 
out-of-door  clothing,  including  a  pair  of  great 
boots. 

"  Is  it  snowing  very  hard,  Tom?  "  queried  the 
lady,  anxiously.     "  What  makes  you  look  so?" 

For  Tom  was  scared — and  he  showed  it.  He 
turned  short  around  without  answering  Mrs. 
Murchiston  again,  and  led  the  way  to  the  kitchen. 
The  other  boys  had  shaken  off  the  snow  and 
were  hovering  over  the  range  for  warmth. 

"  Found  'em  all  right;  didn't  you?  "  demanded 
Bob  Steele. 

"  No.  They  haven't  come  in,"  said  Tom, 
shortly,  and  immediately  Bob  began  pulling  on 
his  coat  again. 

"  Oh,  pshaw !  "  said  Isadore.  "  They'll  be  all 
right." 


BESEIGED   BY  THE   STORM   KING  149 

"Where  are  Jerry  and  the  others?"  Mr. 
Cameron  asked  the  maids. 

"  Sure,  sir,"  said  Mary,  who  was  peering  won- 
deringly  out  of  the  window  at  the  thick  cloud  of 
snow  sweeping  across  the  pane,  "  sure,  sir,  Jerry 
and  the  min  went  down  in  the  swamp  to  draw  up 
some  back-logs.  And  it's  my  opinion  they'd  bet- 
ter be  in  out  of  this  storm." 

"  I  agree  with  you,  Mary,"  returned  Mr.  Cam- 
eron, grimly,  as  he  opened  the  door  and  saw  for 
the  first  time  just  what  they  had  to  face.  "  But 
perhaps  they'll  pick  up. the  girls  on  their  way 
home.  Trust  those  woodsmen  for  finding  their 
way." 

Tom  and  Bob  followed  him  out  of  the  house. 
They  faced  a  wall  of  falling  snow  so  thick  that 
every  object  beyond  arm's  length  from  them  was 
blotted  out. 

"Merciful  heavens!"  groaned  Mr.  Cameron. 
"  Your  sister  and  the  girls  will  never  find  their 
way  through  this  smother." 

"  Nor  the  men,  either,"  said  Tom,  shortly. 

"  Oh,  I  say!  "  exclaimed  Bob.  "  It  can't  snow 
like  this  for  long;  can  it?" 

"  We  have  never  seen  a  right  good  snowstorm 
in  the  woods,"  quoth  Mr.  Cameron.  "  From 
what  the  men  tell  me,  this  is  likely  to  continue 
for  hours.  I  am  dreadfully  worried  about  the 
girls » 


150  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"What's  that?"  cried  Tom,  interrupting 
him. 

A  muffled  shout  sounded  through  the  driving 
snow.  In  chorus  Mr.  Cameron  and  the  two  boys 
raised  their  own  voices  in  an  answering  shout. 

"They're  coming!  "  cried  Bob. 

"  It  is  Long  Jerry  Todd  and  the  men — hear 
the  harness  rattling?"  returned  Tom,  and  he 
started  down  the  steps  in  the  direction  of  the 
stables. 

11  Wait !  we'll  keep  together,"  commanded 
Mr.  Cameron.  "  I  hope  they  have  brought  the 
girls  with  them." 

"  Oh,  but  the  girls  didn't  go  toward  the 
swamp,"  returned  his  son.  "  They  started  due 
north." 

"Shout  again!"  commanded  Mr.  Cameron, 
and  the  two  parties  kept  shouting  back  and  forth 
until  they  met  not  far  beyond  the  outbuildings 
belonging  to  the  lodge.  The  great  pair  of 
draught  horses  were  ploughing  through  the  drifts 
and  the  three  men  were  whooping  loudly  beside 
them. 

"Dangerous  work  this,  for  you,  sir,"  cried 
Long  Jerry.  "  You'd  all  better  remained  in- 
doors. It's  come  a  whole  lot  quicker  than  I  ex- 
pected. We're  in  for  a  teaser,  Mr.  Cameron. 
Couldn't  scarce  make  out  the  path  through  the 
woods." 


BESKIGED   BY  THE   STORM   KING  151 

"Have  you  seen  the  girls,  Jerry?"  cried  Tom 
Cameron. 

"Bless  us!"  gasped  the  tall  guide.  "You 
don't  mean  that  any  of  them  gals  is  out  o£ 
bounds?'' 

"All  six  of  them  went  into  the  woods — to- 
ward the  north — about  two  hours  ago.  They 
went  on  snowshoes,"  said  Tom. 

The  three  woodsmen  said  never  a  word,  but 
standing  there  in  the  driving  snow,  at  the  heads 
of  the  horses,  they  looked  at  each  other  for  some 
moments. 

"  Well,"  said  Jerry,  at  last,  and  without  com- 
menting further  on  Tom's  statement;  "  we'd  best 
put  up  the  horses  and  then  see  what's  to  be 
done." 

"To  the  north,  Tom?"  said  his  father,  brok- 
enly.    "  Are  you  sure  ?  " 

"Yes,  sir.     I  am  sure  of  it." 

"Is  there  any  house  in  that  direction — withili 
reasonable  distance,  Jerry?"  asked  the  gentle- 
man. 

"God  bless  us,  sir!"  gasped  the  guide.  "I 
don't  know  of  one  betwixt  here  and  the  Canadian 
line.  The  wind  is  coming  now  from  the  north- 
west. If  they  are  trying  to  get  back  to  the  camp 
they'll  be  drifted  towards  the  southeast  and  miss 
us  altogether." 

"  Don't  say  that,  Jerry!  "  gasped  Tom.     "  We 


152  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

must  find  them.  Why,  if  this  keeps  up  for  an 
hour  they'll  be  buried  in  the  drifts." 

"  Pray  heaven  it  holds  off  soon,"  groaned  his 
father. 

The  men  could  offer  them  no  comfort.  Being 
old  woodsmen  themselves,  they  knew  pretty  well 
what  the  storm  foreboded.  A  veritable  blizzard 
had  swept  down  from  the  Lakes  and  the  whole 
country  might  be  shrouded  for  three  or  four 
days.  Meanwhile,  as  long  as  the  snow  kept 
falling,  it  would  be  utterly  reckless  to  make 
search  for  those  lost  in  the  snow. 

Jerry  and  his  mates  said  nothing  more  at  the 
time,  however.  They  all  made  their  way  to  the 
stables,  kicked  the  drift  away  from  the  door,  and 
got  the  horses  into  their  stalls.  They  all  went 
inside  out  of  the  storm  and  closed  the  doors 
against  the  driving  snow.  In  five  minutes,  when 
the  animals  were  made  secure  and  fed,  and  they 
tried  to  open  the  doors  again,  the  wind  had 
heaped  the  snow  to  such  a  height  against  them 
that  they  could  not  get  out. 

Fortunately  there  was  a  small  door  at  the 
other  end  of  the  barn,  and  by  this  they  all  got 
out  and  made  their  way  speedily  across  the  clear- 
ing to  the  house — Long  Jerry  leading  the  way. 
Tom  and  Bob  realized  that  they  might  easily 
have  become  lost  in  that  short  distance  had  they 
been  left  to  their  own  resources. 


BESEIGED   BY  THE   STORM   KING  153 

Mr.  Cameron  was  very  pale  and  his  lips 
trembled  when  he  stood  before  the  three  woods- 
men in  the  lodge  kitchen. 

"You  mean  that  to  try  to  seek  for  the  girls 
now  is  impossible,  Jerry?"  he  asked. 

"What  do  you  think  about  it  yourself,  sir?" 
returned  the  guide.     "  You  have  been  out  in  it." 

"  I — I  don't  expect  you  to  attempt  what  I  can- 
not do  myself " 

"  If  mortal  man  could  live  in  it,  we'd  make  the 
attempt  without  ye,  sir,"  declared  Long  Jerry, 
warmly.  "  But  neither  dogs  nor  men  could  find 
their  way  in  this  smother  It  looks  like  it  had 
set  in  for  a  big  blizzard.  You  don't  know  jest 
what  that  means  up  here  in  the  backwoods.  Log- 
ging camps  will  be  snowed  under  and  mules, 
horses  and  oxen  will  have  to  be  shot  to  save  them 
from  starvation.  The  hunting  will  be  mighty 
poor  next  fall,  for  the  deer  and  other  varmints 
will  starve  to  death,  too. 

"  If  poor  people  in  the  woods  don't  starve 
after  this  storm,  it  will  be  lucky.  Why,  the  last 
big  one  we  had  the  Octohac  Company  had  a  gang 
of  fifty  men  shoveling  out  a  road  for  twenty 
miles  so  as  to  get  tote  teams  through  with  pro- 
visions for  their  camp.  And  then  men  had  to 
drag  the  tote  teams  instead  of  horses,  the  critters 
were  so  near  starved.     Ain't  that  so,  Ben?  " 

"  Surest  thing  you  know,"  agreed  one  of  the 


154  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

other  hands.  "  I  remember  that  time  well.  I 
was  working  for  the  Goodwin  &  Manse  Com- 
pany. There  was  nigh  a  hundred  of  us  on  snow- 
shoes  that  dragged  fodder  from  the  farmers 
along  Rolling  River  to  feed  our  stock  on,  and  we 
didn't  get  out  enough  logs  that  winter  to  pay  the. 
company  for  keeping  the  camp  open." 

"  That's  the  way  on  it,  Mr.  Cameron,"  said 
Long  Jerry.  "  We  got  to  sit  down  and  wait  for 
a  hold-up.  Nothing  else  to  do.  You  kin  try 
telephoning  up  and  down  the  line  to  see  if  the 
girls  changed  their  route  and  got  to  any  house." 

But  when  Mr.  Cameron  tried  to  use  the  'phone 
he  found  that  already  there  was  a  break  some- 
where on  the  line.     He  could  get  no  reply. 

They  were  besieged  by  the  Storm  King,  and 
he  proved  to  be  a  most  pitiless  enemy.  The 
drifting  snow  rose  higher  and  higher  about  the 
lodge  every  hour.  The  day  dragged  on  its  weary 
length  into  night,  and  still  the  wind  blew  and 
the  snow  sifted  down,  until  even  the  top  panes 
of  the  first  floor  windows  were  buried  beneath  the 
white  mantle. 


CHAPTER  XX 

THE  SNOW  SHROUD 

It  was  rather  difficult  to  find  trees  with"  the 
new  and  fragrant  leaves  started,  at  this  time  of 
year;  therefore  Ruth  and  her  companions  went 
rather  farther  from  Snow  Camp  than  they  had 
at  first  intended.  But  the  warning  flakes  of  snow 
served  in  no  manner  to  startle  them.  The  snow 
had  been  floating  down,  and  whitening  their 
clothing  and  adorning  the  trees  with  a  beautiful 
icing,  for  more  than  half  an  hour,  before  any- 
body gave  the  coming  storm  a  serious  thought. 

"  Perhaps  we'd  better  go  back  and  not  get  any 
stuffing  for  the  pillows  to-day,  Helen,"  said  Ruth, 
doubtfully.  "  See  yonder!  isn't  that  more  snow 
coming?" 

"Bah!"  exclaimed  Lluella,  interrupting, 
"What's  a  little  snow?" 

"  Cautious  Ruthie  is  usually  right,"  said 
Madge  Steele,  frankly.     "  Let's  go  back." 

"  But  we've  scarcely  got  anything  in  the  bags 
yet!"  wailed  Jennie  Stone.  "All  this  walk  on 
these  clumsy  old  snowshoes  for  nothing?" 

i55 


156         RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"  Well,  we'll  just  go  as  far  as  that  grove  of 
small  trees  that  we  found  the  other  day,  and  no 
farther,"  said  Helen,  who  naturally — being 
hostess — had  her  "  say  "  about  it. 

As  yet  there  was  no  real  sign  of  danger.  At 
least,  in  the  woods  the  girls  had  no  means  of  ap- 
prehending the  approach  of  the  shroud  of  thick 
snow  that  was  sweeping  out  of  the  northwest. 
They  could  not  see  far  about  them  through  the 
aisles  of  the  wood. 

Laughing  and  joking,  the  jolly  party  reached 
the  spot  of  which  Helen  had  spoken.  They  set 
to  work  there  in  good  earnest  to  fill  their  bags 
with  the  pungent  new  growth  of  the  trees,  whose 
bending  branches  were  easily  within  their  reach. 

"  How  this  soft  snow  does  clog  the  snow- 
shoes,"  complained  Belle  Tingley,  removing  the 
racquettes  to  knock  them  free. 

"But. the  flakes  are  smaller  now,"  said  Ruth. 
"  See,  girls !  it's  coming  faster  and  finer.  I  be- 
lieve we  shall  have  to  hurry  back,  Helen." 

"  Ruth  is  right,"  added  Madge  Steele,  who,  as 
the  oldest  of  the  party,  should  have  used  her  au- 
thority before  this.  "Why!  it's  coming  in  a  per- 
fect sheet." 

"Sheet!"  repeated  Jennie  Stone,  with  scorn. 
"  Call  it  rather  a  blanket.     And  a  thick  one." 

"B-r-r-r!  How  cold  it's  grown!"  cried 
Lluella. 


THE   SNOW   SHROUD 


157 


"The  wind  is  coming  with  the  snow,  girls," 
shouted  Helen.  "  Come  on !  let's  bustle  along 
home.  This  place  was  never  meant  for  us  to  be 
bivouacked  in.  Why!  we'll  have  Long  Jerry 
Todd,  and  the  boys,  and  the  dogs,  and  all  hands 
out  hunting  for  us.  Dear  me!  how  the  wind 
blows!" 

"I  can't  see,  girls!"  wailed  Belle.  "Wait 
for  me !     Don't  be  mean ! " 

"And  don't  forget  Little  Eva!"  begged 
Heavy,  tramping  on  behind  and  carrying  one  of 
the  bags.  "  I  declare !  I  can't  see  Ruth  and 
Helen." 

"  Don't  get  so  far  ahead,  girls !  "  sang  out 
Madge  Steele,  warningly.  "We'll  get  sepa- 
rated from  you." 

To  their  surprise  Ruth  answered  from  their 
left  hand — and  not  far  away. 

"  We're  not  ahead,  girls,"  said  Ruth,  quietly. 
"  Only  the  snow  is  falling  so  thickly  that  you 
can't  see  us.  Wait!  Let  us  all  get  together 
and  make  a  fresh  start.  It  wouldn't  do  to  get 
separated  in  such  a  storm." 

"  Oh,  this  won't  last — it  can't  snow  so  hard  for 
long!  "  cried  Jennie.  "But  we  can  go  on,  cling- 
ing to  each  other's  jacket-tails." 

The  six  had  come  together,  and  Helen  laugh- 
ingly "  counted  noses."  "Though  we  mustn't 
even  count  'em  hard/'  she  said,  briskly  rubbing 


158  RUTH   FIELDING   AT    SNOW   CAMP 

her  own,  "  or  we'll  break  them  off.  Isn't  it 
cold?" 

11  It's  dreadful !  "  wailed  Lluella.  "  The  wind 
cuts  right  through  everything  I've  got  on.  I 
shall  freeze  if  we  stand  here." 

"We  won't  stand  here.  We'll  hurry  on  to 
the  camp." 

"Which  way,  girls?"  demanded  Heavy.  "I 
confess  I  have  lost  all  the  points  of  the  compass 
— and  I  never  did  know  them  too  well." 

"  Oh,  I  know  the  way  back,"  said  Helen, 
stoutly.     "  Don't  you,  Ruth?" 

"  I  believe  so,"  replied  the  girl  from  the  Red 
Mill. 

But  when  they  started,  Ruth  was  for  one  direc- 
tion and  Helen  for  another.  The  fact  that  they 
did  not  all  think  alike  frightened  them,  and 
Madge  called  another  halt. 

"This  will  never  do,"  she  said,  earnestly. 
"  Why,  we  might  be  lost  in  such  thick  snow  as 
this." 

"  I  can't  walk  any  farther  with  this  bag  and 
on  these  old  snow-shoes!"  cried  Heavy.  "  Say! 
let's  get  under  shelter  somewhere  and  wait  for  it 
to  hold  up — or  until  they  come  and  dig  us  out." 

"We're  a  nice  lot  of  'babes  in  the  woods,'" 
sniffed  Belle. 

"  I  wish  we'd  let  the  boys  come  with  us,"  said 
Helen. 


THE   SNOW   SHROUD 


159 


"Won't  they  have  the  laugh  on  us?"  ob- 
served Madge. 

"  I  don't  care  if  they  do,"  mourned  Lluella. 
"  I  wish  they  were  here  to  help  us  home." 

11  Come,  come!  "  said  Ruth,  cheerfully.  "We 
ought  to  be  able  to  help  ourselves.  Here  is  a  big 
tree  with  drooping  branches.  Let's  get  under  it 
where  the  snow  is  not  so  deep.  It  may  hold  up 
in  a  little  while,  and  then  we  can  start  fresh. 
Come  around  here  where  the  wind  won't  get  at 


us." 


She  led  the  way  and  the  other  girls  crowded 
after  her.  The  low-branched  tree  broke  the 
force  of  the  gale.  Ruth  lifted  the  end  of  one 
sweeping  branch  and  her  friends  all  crawled  be- 
neath the  shelter,  and  as  she  followed  them 
Heavy  squealed: 

"  Oh,  oh,  oh!  suppose  there  should  be  a  bear 
under  here?" 

"Nonsense!  suppose  there  should  be  a  griffin 
— or  a  unicorn.  Don't  be  foolish,"  snapped 
Madge. 

They  at  once  found  the  retreat  a  perfect  wind- 
break, and  became  comfortable — all  hugging 
together  "  like  a  nestful  of  owlets,"  Helerf 
said,  and  all  declared  themselves  as  "  warm  as 
toast." 

But  the  Wind  howled  mournfully  through  the 
wood,  and  the  snow  sifted  down  with  a  strange, 


160         RUTH  FIELDING  AT  SNOW  CAMP 

mysterious  "  hush — hush — hus-s-sh  "  that  made 
them  feel  creepy.  Although  it  was  not  yet  mid- 
day, the  light  was  very  dim  under  the  thick 
branches  of  the  tree.  The  snow  became  banked 
high  behind  them,  and  Ruth,  who  was  in  front, 
had  to  continually  break  away  the  drifting  snow 
with  her  mittened  hands  so  that  they  could  see 
out. 

And  they  could  see  precious  little  outside  of 
their  den.  Just  the  snow  drifting  down,  faster 
and  faster,  thicker  and  thicker,  gathering  so  rap- 
idly that  they  all  were  secretly  frightened,  al- 
though at  first  each  girl  tried  to  speak  cheerfully 
of  it. 

"  If  we'd  only  thought  to  get  Janey  to  put  us 
up  a  luncheon,"  sighed  Heavy,  "  I  wouldn't  have 
minded  staying  here  all  day.  It's  warm  enough, 
that's  sure." 

"  My  feet  are  cold,"  complained  Lluella.  "  I 
don't  believe  it  will  remain  warm  forever." 

"  And  we  couldn't  make  a  fire,"  said  Helen. 

"  I've  matches  in  my  pocket,"  Ruth  said 
quietly.  "  I've  carried  them  in  a  bottle  ever 
since  we've  been  in  the  woods." 

"  For  pity's  sake!  what  for?"  demanded 
Belle. 

"Well — Tom  told  me  to.  He  does.  Helen 
knows,"  said  Ruth,  hesitating. 

"Goodness  me!  it's  like  being  cast  away  on  a 


THE   SNOW   SHROUD  161 

desert  island,"  cried  Heavy.  "  Carrying 
matches!  " 

"  Tom  did  tell  us  to,"  admitted  Helen,  laugh- 
ing. "  But  I  didn't  pay  much  attention  to  what 
he  said.  I  know  he  told  us  that  we  could  never 
tell  when  matches  would  come  in  handy  in  the 
woods." 

11  But  we'd  set  the  forest  afire — and  then  see 
what  damage  would  be  done!  "  cried  Belle. 

"  Not  necessarily.  Especially  in  this  snow," 
returned  Ruth,  calmly.  "  If  we  get  very  cold, 
and  are  delayed  for  long,  we  can  break  the  dry 
branches  off  underneath  this  tree — and  others 
like  it — and  get  a  fire  very  easily.  Tom  told  us 
how  to  do  it." 

"So  he  did!"  cried  Helen.  "I  do  believe 
Ruth  never  forgets  anything  she  is  told.  And 
we  may  be  glad  of  those  matches." 

"Goodness  me!"  whined  Lluella.  "Don't 
talk  so  dreadfully." 

"How  do  you  mean?"  queried  Helen. 

"As  though  weJd  have  to  stay  here  under  this 
old  tree  so  long!  It's  got  to  stop  snowing  soon. 
Or  else  the  men  will  come  after  us." 

"Why,  we  all  believe  that  we  shall  soon  get 
home,"  said  Madge  cheerfully.  "But  the  boys, 
or  the  men,  either,  couldn't  find  us  in  this  storm. 
We  will  have  to  be  patient." 

Patience  was  hard  indeed  to  cultivate  in  their 


162  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

present  situation.  The  minutes  dragged  by  with 
funereal  slowness.  Lluella  began  to  sob,  and 
the  most  cheerful  of  the  party  could  not  keep  up 
her  spirits  indefinitely. 

"  Oh,  but  we'll  be  all  right,  I  am  sure! "  quoth 
Madge.     "  Don't  get  down-hearted,  girls." 

Helen  broke  down  next  and  declared  that 
she  could  not  remain  idle  any  longer.  "We 
must  move  out  of  this,"  she  said.  "  We  must 
find  our  way  back.  Why,  they  might  come 
this  way  hunting  for  us  and  never  find  us — go 
right  by  the  tree.  We  ought  to  get  outside  and 
shout,  at  least." 

11  Don't  let's  leave  this  warm  shelter,"  begged 
Ruth.  "  It  will  be  really  serious  if  we  move 
farther  from  the  regular  camp  instead  of  to- 
ward it." 

"  But  we  cannot  hear  any  rescue  party  shout- 
ing for  us,  nor  can  they  hear  us  under  this  drift," 
insisted  Helen. 

"  Then  we'll  go  out,  one  at  a  time,  and  shout," 
declared  Ruth.     "  Let  me  try." 

She  sprang  up  and  pushed  her  way  through 
the  drift  at  the  mouth  of  their  burrow.  Not  un- 
til she  was  standing  outside  did  she  realize  the 
extent  of  the  storm.  The  snow  was  swept  across 
the  country  in  a  thick  and  heavy  curtain,  with  a 
wind  driving  it,  against  which  she  knew  she  could 
not  stand. 


THE   SNOW   SHROUD  163 

She  could  not  shout  into  the  teeth  of  the  gale, 
and  her  cry  was  driven  back  into  her  own  ears 
as  weak  as  the  mew  of  a  kitten. 

"Ho!"  exclaimed  Madge  Steele.  "They 
couldn't  hear  that  if  they  were  a  stone's  throw 
off.     Let  me  give  a  warwhoop." 

"We're  all  coming  out!  "  cried  the  dissatisfied 
Lluella.  "  Let's  all  shout.  Oh,  girls !  we've 
got  to  get  back  to  the  camp.     We'll  die  here." 

They  scrambled  out  of  the  burrow.  The  wind 
smote  full  against  them  when  once  they  were  in 
the  open.  When  they  raised  their  voices  in 
chorus  it  seemed  as  though  there  was  an  answer- 
ing shout  from  a  certain  direction. 

"Here  we  are!  here  we  are!  Father!  Tom!  " 
shrieked  Helen,  at  the  top  of  her  voice. 

"  Don't  go!  "  begged  Ruth-..  "Let  us  stick  by 
the  tree.     It  will  shelter  us.     Shout  again." 

But  the  majority  of  the  girls  were  for  setting 
off  at  once  toward  the  sound  they  thought  they 
had  heard  in  the  midst  of  the  storm.  Again  and 
again  they  shouted.  They  clung  to  each  other's 
hands  as  they  ploughed  through  the  drifts  (the 
snowshoes  were  of  no  use  to  them  now)  but 
they  did  not  hear  the  answering  cry  again. 

At  last  they  stopped,  all  sorely  frightened, 
Lluella  in  tears.  "What  will  we  do  now?" 
gasped  Belle. 

"  We'd  better  go  back  to  that  tree.     We  were 


164  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

safe  there,"  muttered  Heavy,  her  teeth  chatter- 
ing. 

But  they  had  drifted  with  the  storm,  and  wheft 
they  turned  to  face  it  they  knew  at  once  that 
never  could  they  make  way  against  the  wind  and 
snow. 

"  Oh,  oh,  oh!  "  wailed  Helen.  "  We're  lost! 
we're  lost!  " 

"  Hold  up!  Be  brave!"  urged  her  chum. 
"  We  must  not  give  up  now.  Some  other  tree 
will  give  us  shelter.  Cling  together,  girls.  We 
must  get  somewhere." 

But  where?  It  was  a  question  none  of  them 
could  answer.  They  remained  cowering  in  the 
driving  snow,  utterly  confused  as  to  direction, 
and  fast  becoming  buried  where  they  stood. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

ADRIFT  IN  THE  STORM 

"  We  shall  freeze  to  death  if  we  stay  here ! " 

Madge  Steele  spoke  thus,  and  the  situation 
precluded  any  doubt  as  to  the  truth  of  the  state- 
ment. The  six  girls  from  Snow  Camp  were  in- 
deed in  peril  of  death — and  all  were  convinced 
of  the  fact. 

Lluella  Fairfax  was  in  tears,  and  her  chum, 
Belle  Tingley,  was  on  the  verge  of  weeping,  too. 
Helen  Cameron  had  hard  work  to  keep  back  her 
own  sobs;  even  Jennie  Stone,  the  stout  girl,  was 
past  turning  the  matter  into  a  joke.  And  Madge 
Steele  was  unable  to  suggest  a  single  cheerful  por- 
tent. 

As  they  clung  to  each  other  in  the  driving  snow 
they  seemed,  intuitively,  to  turn  to  Ruth  Field- 
ing. She  was  the  youngest  of  the  six  girls;  but 
she  was  at  this  moment  the  more  assertive  and 
held  herself  better  under  control  than  her  mates. 

It  had  been  against  her  advice  that  they  had 
left  their  temporary  shelter  under  the  tree.  Now 
they  could  not  beat  their  way  back  to  it.     In- 

165 


<l66         RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

deed,  none  of  them  now  knew  the  direction  of 
the  burrow  that  had  sheltered  them  for  more 
than  an  hour. 

What  next  should  they  do? 

Although  unspoken,  this  was  the  question  that 
the  five  silently  asked  of  the  girl  of  the  Red  Mill. 
She  had  displayed  her  pluck  and  good  sense  on 
more  than  one  occasion,  and  her  friends  looked 
to  her  for  help.  Particularly  did  Helen  cling 
to  her  in  this  emergency,  and  although  Ruth  was 
secretly  as  terrified  as  any  of  her  mates,  she 
could  not  give  in  to  the  feeling  when  her  chum 
so  depended  upon  her. 

"  Why,  we're  acting  just  as  silly  as  we  can 
act!  "  she  cried,  speaking  loud  so  that  they  could 
all  hear  her.  "  We  mustn't  give  up  hope.  The 
boys,  or  Mr.  Cameron,  will  find  us.  It  can't 
keep  on  snowing  forever." 

"But  we're  freezing  to  death!"  said  Belle, 
and  broke  out  sobbing  like  her  chum. 

"Stop,  you  silly  thing!"  cried  Madge,  trying 
to  shake  her.  But  she  was  really  so  cold  herself 
that  she  could  not  do  this.  Indeed,  the  keen 
wind  would  soon  make  movement  impossible  if 
they  stood  still  for  long. 

"Let's  keep  moving!"  shouted  Ruth. 
"  Take  hold  of  hands,  girls — two  by  two. 
Helen  and  I  will  go  ahead.  Now,  Belle,  you 
take  Lluella.  Madge  and  Heavy  in  the  rear. 
Forward — march !  " 


ADRIFT  IN  THE   STORM  167 

"This  is  a  regular  Amazon  March;  isn't  it?" 
croaked  Heavy,  from  behind. 

"  But  where  shall  we  march  to?"  Belle 
queried. 

"  We'll  keep  going  until  we  find  some  shelter. 
That's  the  best  we  can  do.  Indeed,  it  is  all  we 
can  do,"  replied  Ruth. 

It  was  impossible  to  do  more  than  drift  before 
the  gale.  Ruth  knew  this,  and  likewise  she  was 
confident  that  they  were  by  no  means  getting 
nearer  to  the  camp  when  they  followed  such  a 
course.  But  she  hoped  to  find  some  shelter  be- 
fore the  weakest  of  the  girls  gave  out.. 

This  was  Lluella  Fairfax.  She  was  delicately 
built,  and  unused  to  muscular  exertion  of  any 
kind.  She  seldom  took  up  any  gym  work  at 
Briarwood,  Ruth  knew;  therefore  it  was  not 
strange  that  she  should  be  the  first  to  give  out. 

For,  although  the  sextette  of  girls  went  but  a 
short  distance,  and  traveled  very  slowly,  it  was 
indeed  a  fearful  task  for  them.  The  storm 
drove  them  on,  and  suddenly,  when  Jennie  Stone 
gave  utterance  to  a  wild  whoop  and  disappeared 
from  view,  Lluella  and  Belle  burst  out  crying 
again,  and  even  Madge  showed  signs  of  weak- 
ening. 

"Help!  help!"  she  cried.  "She's  fallen 
down  a  precipice !  " 

"She's  smothered  in  a  snow-bank!"  gasped 
Helen. 


168  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

Heavy  uttered  another  cry,  but  seemingly  from 
a  great  way  off.  Ruth  scrambled  back  to 
Madge,  and  suddenly  found  her  own  feet  slip- 
ping over  the  brink  of  some  steep  descent.  She 
cried  out  and  clung  to  Madge.  Helen  took  hold 
of  Madge's  other  hand,  and  they  drew  Ruth 
back  to  safety. 

"Look  out!"  commanded  the  older  girl. 
"  You'll  be  down  in  that  hole,  too,  Ruth." 

"  No,  no !  We  must  make  some  attempt  to 
get  her  up.  Jennie!  Jennie!  where  are  you?" 
shrieked  Ruth. 

"Right  under  you.  Girls!  you  want  to  be 
careful.  I've  slid  down  a  bank  and  am  standing 
on  what  appears  to  be  a  narrow  shelf  along  the 
face  of  this  bank,  or  hill.  And  the  snow  isn't 
drifted  here.     Come  down." 

"  Oh,  I  wouldn't  dare !  "  cried  Lluella. 

"  If  the  place  will  afford  us  any  shelter  from 
this  awful  wind,  why  not?"  demanded  Helen. 
"  We  might  try  it." 

"How  deep  are  you  down,  Jennie?"  asked 
Madge. 

"  Only  a  few  feet.  You  couldn't  ever  haul 
me  up,  anyway,"  and  the  stout  girl  laughed, 
hysterically.      "  You  know  how  heavy  I  am." 

"  Let  me  try  it,"  said  Ruth,  eagerly.  "  Here's 
where  Jennie  slid  over.     Look  out,  below !  " 

11  Oh,  come  on !  you  can't  hurt  me,"  declared 


ADRIFT  IN  THE   STORM  169 

the  stout  one,  and  in  a  moment  Ruth  had  slipped 
over  the  edge  of  the  bank  and  had  landed  beside 
Heavy. 

"  It's  all  right,  girls !  "  shouted  Ruth  at  once. 
She  could  see  that  the  shelf  widened  a  little  way 
beyond,  and  was  overhung  by  a  huge  boulder  in 
the  bank,  making  a  really  admirable  shelter — not 
exactly  a  cave,  but  a  large-sized  cavity. 

After  some  urging,  Lluella  and  Belle  allowed 
themselves  to  be  lowered  by  Madge  and  Helen 
over  the  brink  of  the  bank.  Then  Helen  her- 
self slid  down,  and  then  the  oldest  girl.  When 
Miss  Steele  landed  upon  the  shelf  beside  them, 
she  cried: 

"This  is  just  a  mercy!  Another  five  minutes 
up  there  in  the  wind  and  snow,  and  I  don't  be- 
lieve I  could  have  walked  at  all.  My,  my !  ain't 
I  cold!" 

The  six  girls  cowered  together  under  the  over- 
hanging rock.  The  snow  blew  in  a  thick  cloud 
over  their  heads  and  they  heard  it  sifting  down 
through  the  trees  below  them.  They  were  upon 
a  steep  side-hill — the  wall  of  a  steep  gully,  per- 
haps. How  deep  it  was  they  had  no  means  of 
knowing;  but  several  good-sized  trees  sprouted 
out  of  the  hill  near  their  refuge.  They  could  see 
the  dim  forms  of  these  now  and  then  as  the  snow- 
cloud  changed. 

But  although  they  were  out  of  the  beat  of  the 


170  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

storm,  they  grew  no  warmer.  More  than 
Madge  Steele  complained  of  the  cold  within  the 
next  few  minutes.  Ruth,  indeed,  felt  her  ex- 
tremities growing  numb.  The  terrible,  biting 
frost  was  gradually  overcoming  them,  now  that 
they  were  no  longer  lighting  the  blast.  Exertion 
had  fought  this  deadly  coldness  off;  but  Ruth 
Fielding  knew  that  their  present  inaction  was 
beckoning  the  approach  of  unconsciousness. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

THE  HIDEOUT 

Helen  had  drawn  close  to  her  chum  and  they 
sat  upon  the  pile  of  leaves  that  had  blown  into 
this  lair  under  the  bank,  with  their  arms  about 
each  other's  waists. 

"What  do  you  suppose  will  become  of  us, 
Ruthie?"  Helen  whispered. 

"Why,  how  can  we  tell?  Maybe  the  boys 
and  Long  Jerry  are  searching  for  us  right 
now " 

"In  this  dreadful  storm?  Impossible!"  de- 
clared Helen. 

"  Well,  that  they  will  search  for  us  as  soon  as 
it  holds  up,  we  can  be  sure,"  Ruth  rejoined. 

"But,  in  the  meantime?  They  may  be  hours 
finding  us.  And  I  am  sure  I  would  not  know 
how  to  start  for  Snow  Camp,  if  the  storm  should 
stop." 

"  Quite  true,  Helen." 

"  We  won't  an-n-ny  of  us  start  for  Snow  Camp 
again!"  quavered  Lluella  Fairfax.  "We'll  be 
frozen  dead — that's  what'll  happen  to  us." 

171 


172  RUTH   FIELDING  AT    SNOW   CAMP 

"  I  am  dreadfully  cold,"  said  Madge.  "  How 
are  you,  Heavy?  " 

"  Stiff  as  a  poker,  thank  you !  "  returned  the 
Irrepressible.  "  I  haven't  any  feet  at  all  now. 
They've  frozen  and  dropped  off!  " 

"  Don't  talk  so  terribly ! "  wailed  Belle.  M  We 
are  freezing  to  death  here.  I  am  sleepy.  I've 
read  that  when  folks  get  drowsy  out  in  a  storm 
like  this  they  are  soon  done  for.  Now,  isn't  that 
a  fact,  Madge  Steele?" 

"Nonsense!"  exclaimed  the  older  girl;  but 
Heavy  broke  in  with: 

"  It  strikes  me  that  now  is  the  time  to  make 
use  of  Ruth's  matches.  Let's  build  a  rousing 
fire." 

"  How?"  demanded  Helen.  "Where  can  we 
get  fuel?     It's  all  under  the  snow." 

"There's  plenty  of  kindling  right  under  us" 
declared  Jennie  Stone,  vigorously.  "  And  Ruth 
spoke  about  the  under  branches  of  these  trees 
being  dry " 

"  i\nd  so  they  are,"  declared  Ruth,  struggling 
to  her  feet.  "We  must  do  something.  A  rous- 
ing fire  against  this  rock  will  keep  us  warm.  We 
can  heat  the  rock  and  then  draw  the  fire  out  and 
get  behind  it.     It  will  be  fine!  " 

"  Oh,  I  can't  move !  "  wailed  Lluella. 

"  Luella  doesn't  want  to  work,"  said  Madge. 
"  But  you  get  up  and  do  your  share,  Miss!     If 


THE   HIDEOUT  173 

you  freeze  to  death  here  your  mother  will  never 
forgive  me." 

Of  course,  it  would  be  Heavy  that  got  into 
trouble.  She  made  a  misstep  off  the  platform 
and  sunk  to  her  arm-pits  in  a  soft  bank  of  snow, 
and  it  was  all  the  others  could  do  to  pull  her 
out.  But  this  warmed  them,  and  actually  got 
them  to  laughing. 

"  I  believe  that  laughing  warms  one  as  much 
as  anything,1'  said  Madge. 

"  Ha,  ha !  "  croaked  Heavy,  grimly.  "  Your 
laughing  hasn't  warmed  me  any.  I'm  wet  to 
my  waist,  I  do  believe!  " 

"  We  shall  have  to  have  a  fire  now  to  dry 
Jennie,"  said  Ruth.     "  Now  take  care." 

They  had  all  abandoned  their  snowshoes  long 
since,  and  the  racquettes  would  have  been  of  no 
use  to  them  in  the  present  emergency,  anyway. 
But  Ruth  and  Madge  got  to  the  nearest  tree,  and 
fortunately  it  was  half  dead.  They  could  break 
off  many  of  the  smaller  branches,  and  soon 
brought  to  the  platform  a  great  armful  of  the 
brush. 

Ruth's  matches  were  dry  and  they  heaped  up 
the  leaves  and  rubbish  and  started  a  blaze.  The 
other  girls  brought  more  fuel  and  soon  a  hot  fire 
was  leaping  against  the  side  of  the  rock  and  its 
circle  of  warmth  cheered  them.  They  got  green 
branches  of  spruce  and  pine  and  brushed  away 


!I74  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

the  snow  and  banked  it  up  in  a  wall  all  about  the 
platform,  which  served  them  for  a  camp.  Then 
they  scraped  the  fire  out  from  the  rock,  threw  on 
more  branches  (for  the  green  ones  would  burn 
now  that  the  fire  was  so  hot)  and  crowded  in  be- 
tween the  blaze  and  the  rock. 

"This  is  just  scrumptious!"  declared  Heavy. 
"  We  sha'n't  freeze  now."  ' 

"  Not  if  we  can  keep  the  fire  going,"  said 
Helen. 

Being  warm,  they  all  tried  to  be  cheerful  there- 
after. They  told  stories,  they  sang  their  school 
songs,  and  played  guessing  games. 

Meanwhile,  the  wind  shrieked  through  the 
forest  above  their  "  hideout,"  and  the  snow  con- 
tinued to  fall  as  though  it  had  no  intention  of 
ever  stopping.  The  hours  dragged  by  toward 
dark — and  an  early  dark  it  would  be  on  this 
stormy  day. 

"  Oh,  if  we  only  had  something  to  eat ! " 
groaned  Heavy.  "Wish  I'd  saved  my  snow- 
shoes." 

"What  for?"  demanded  Bell.  "What  pos- 
sible good  could  they  have  been  to  you,  silly?" 

"  They  were  strung  with  deer-hide,  and  I  have 
heard  that  when  castaway  sailors  get  very,  very 
hungry,  they  always  chew  their  boots.  I  can't 
spare  my  boots,"  quoth  Jennie  Stone,  trying  to 
joke  to  the  bitter  end. 


THE   HIDEOUT  175 

The  wind  wheezed  above  them,  the  darkness 
fell  with  the  snow.  Beyond  the  glow  of  the 
pile  of  coals  on  the  rocky  ledge,  the  curtain  of 
snow  looked  gray — then  drab — then  actually 
black.  Moon  and  stars  were  far,  far  away; 
none  of  their  light  percolated  through  the  mass 
of  clouds  and  falling  snow  that  mantled  these 
big  wastes  of  the  backwoods. 

"  Oh !  I  never  realized  anything  could  be  so 
lonely,"  whispered  Helen  in  Ruth's  ear. 

"And  how  worried  your  father  and  Mrs. 
Murchiston  will  be,"  returned  her  chum.  "  Of 
course,  we  shall  get  out  of  it  all  right,  Helen; 
but  did  you  ever  suppose  so  much  snow  could 
fall  at  one  time?" 

"Never!" 

"And  no  sign  of  it  holding  up  at  all,"  said 
Madge,  who  had  overheard. 

"Sh!  Belle  and  Lluella  have  curled  up  here 
and  gone  to  sleep,"  said  Helen. 

"  Lucky  Infants,"  observed  Madge. 

"  I'm  going  to  sleep,  too,"  said  Heavy,  with 
a  yawn. 

"There  is  no  danger  now.  We're  as  warm 
as  can  be  here,"  Ruth  said.  "  Why  don't  you 
take  a  nap,  Helen?  Madge  and  I  will  keep  the 
first  watch — and  keep  the  fire  burning." 

"  Suppose  there  should  be  wolves — or  bears," 
whispered  Helen. 


176  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

"  Ridiculous !  no  self-respecting  beast  would  be 
out  in  such  a  gale.  They'd  know  better,"  de- 
clared Madge  Steele,  briskly. 

"  And  if  one  does  come  here,"  muttered  Jen- 
nie, sleepily,  "  I  shall  kill  and  eat  him." 

She  nodded  off  the  next  moment  and  Helen 
followed  her  example.  Madge  and  Ruth  talked 
to  keep  each  other  awake.  Occasionally  they 
fought  their  way  to  the  half-dead  tree  and 
brought  back  armfuls  of  its  smaller  branches. 

"It's  a  shame,"  declared  Miss  Steele,  "that 
girls  don't  carry  knives,  and  such  useful  things. 
Did  you  ever  know  a  girl  to  have  afiything  in 
her  pocket  that  was  worth  carrying — if  she 
chanced  by  good  luck  to  have  a  pocket  at  all? 
Now,  with  a  knife,  we  could  get  some  better 
wood." 

"  I  know,"  Ruth  admitted.  "  I  know  more 
about  camping  out  than  ever  I  did  before.  Next 
time,  I'm  going  to  carry  things.  You  never 
know  what  is  going  to  happen." 

As  the  evening  advanced  the  cold  became  more 
biting.  They  stirred  up  the  fire  with  a  long 
stick  and  the  glowing  coals  threw  out  increased 
warmth.  The  four  sleeping  girls  stirred  un- 
easily, and  Madge,  putting  her  hand  against  the 
back  wall  of  rock,  found  that  it  had  cooled. 

"  When  it  comes  ten  o'clock,"  she  said,  consult- 
ing the  watch  she  carried,  "  we'll  wake  them  up, 


THE   HIDEOUT 


*77 


make  them  stir  around  a  bit,  and  well  drag  all 
these  coals  over  against  the  rock  again.  Then 
we'll  heap  on  the  rubbish  and  heat  up  the  stones 
once  more.  We  ought  to  keep  warm  after  that 
till  near  daylight." 

<(  The  smut  is  spoiling  our  clothes,"  said  Ruth. 
- 1  don't  know  as  that  matters  much.  I'd 
rather  spoil  everything  I've  got  on  than  run  the 
risk  of  freezing,"  declared  Madge,  with  convic- 
tion. 

They  did  what  they  could  to  keep  the  other 
girls  warm;  but  before  the  hour  Madge  had  pro- 
posed to  awaken  them,  Lluella  roused  and  cried 
a  little  because  she  was  so  chilly. 

44  My  goodness  me,  Lu!  "  yawned  Heavy,  who 
was  awakened,  too,  "  you  are  just  the  leakiest 
person  that  I  ever  saw!  You  must  have  been 
born  crying! " 

"  I  never  heard  that  we  came  into  the  world 
laughing,"  said  Madge;  "so  Lluella  isn't  differ- 
ent from  the  rest  of  us  on  that  score." 

"But  thank  goodness  we're  not  all  such  snivel- 
ers," grumbled  Heavy.  "Want  me  to  get  up? 
What  for?" 

But  when  Madge  and  Ruth  explained  what 
they  intended  to  do,  all  the  girls  willingly  be- 
stirred themselves  and  helped  in  the  moving  of 
the  fire  and  the  gathering  of  more  fuel. 

"  Of  course  we  can't  expect  any  help  to-night," 


178  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

said  Helen.  "  But  I  know  that  they'll  start  out 
hunting  for  us  at  daybreak,  no  matter  whether  it 
keeps  on  snowing,  or  not." 

"  And  a  nice  time  they'll  have  finding  us  down 
in  this  hole,"  complained  Belle  Tingley. 

"Lucky  I  fell  into  this  hole,  just  the  same," 
remarked  Heavy.  "  It  just  about  saved  our 
lives." 

"  But  I  guess  we  would  have  been  a  whole  lot 
better  off  if  we  hadn't  moved  from  the  first  big 
tree  Ruth  got  us  to  creep  under,"  Helen  said, 
thoughtfully.  "  We  couldn't  have  been  more 
than  two  miles  from  Snow  Camp  then.  Now  we 
don't  know  where  we  are." 

"  Never  mind  that,  Helen,"  advised  Madge. 
"  Help  get  in  the  wood.  Now,  we  want  a  big, 
rousing  fire.  We'll  just  heat  that  old  rock  up  so 
that  it  will  stay  warm  all  night.  It  will  be  like 
sleeping  as  the  Russian  peasants  do — on  top  of 
their  stoves." 

They  had  piled  the  brush  on  the  coals,  after 
scraping  the  coals  back  upon  the  ledge,  and  the 
firelight  was  dancing  far  up  the  rock,  and  shining  i 
out  into  the  steadily  drifting  snow,  when  suddenly 
Helen  seized  her  chum's  hand  and  cried: 

"Listen!  whatV  that?" 

The  girls  grew  silent  instantly — and  showing 
no  little  fear.  From  somewhere  out  in  the  storm 
a  cry  came  to  their  ears. 


THE  HIDEOUT 


179 


"There  it  is  again,"  gasped  Helen.  "I 
heard  it  twice  before." 

"  I  hear  it,"  repeated  Madge.     "  Wait." 

Again  the  distant  sound  came  forlornly  to 
their  ears.  That  time  they  all  distinguished  it. 
And  they  knew  that  their  first  hope  was  quenched. 
It  was  no  sound  of  a  rescuing  party  searching  for 
them  in  the  storm,  for  the  word — repeated  sev- 
eral times,  and  unmistakable — they  all  identified. 

"Help/" 


CHAPTER   XXIII 

A   DOUBLE   CAPTIVITY 

11  It's  a  ghost!  "  gasped  Belle  as  the  voice  out 
of  the  storm  died  away  down  the  wind. 

"  So  are  you !  "  snapped  Madge.  "  What 
would  a  ghost  want  any  help  for?     Ridiculous!  " 

"  Goodness  me !  "  drawled  Heavy.  "  Seems 
to  me  even  a  disembodied  spirit  might  feel  the 
need  of  help  if  it  was  out  in  such  a  gale  as  this." 

"I  mean  that  we  only  thought  we  heard  the 
voice,"  chattered  Belle. 

"  Funny  we  should  all  think  with  such  unanim- 
ity/' scoffed  Ruth.  "  That  was  certainly  a  very 
able-bodied  spirit — There!" 

Again  the  cry  came  brokenly  through  the 
storm. 

"  Somebody  lost  like  ourselves,"  said  Lluella, 
with  a  shiver. 

"  And  he  sees  the  light  of  our  fire,"  Jennie 
Stone  urged. 

"We  must  help,  whoever  it  is,"  Ruth  cried. 
41  Shout,  girls!  Maybe  he  wants  to  know  the 
way =-w 

180 


A   DOUBLE   CAPTIVITY  181 

*  The  fire  will  show  him,"  said  Madge, 
quickly. 

"  Perhaps  he  is  hurt/'  said  Helen. 

"Shout!"  commanded  Ruth. 

They  raised  their  voices  in  a  ragged  chorus 
of  cries.  "Again!"  cried  Ruth,  and  that  time 
they  sent  their  halloo  out  into  the  storm  with 
more  vigor  and  unanimity.  Once  more,  after 
they  had  waited  a  full  minute,  they  could  plainly 
distinguish  the  word  "  Help ! 

"  This  won't  do,"  said  Ruth,  briskly.  "  Who- 
ever  it  is  cannot  get  to  us." 

"  And  we  can't  get  to  him!  "  cried  Lluella. 

"  I  am  going  to  try.  I'll  go  alone.  You  girls 
keep  hollering.  I  won't  go  out  of  earshot," 
promised  Ruth. 

"Don't  do  it,  Ruthie!  You'll  be  lost,"  cried 
Helen.     "  Then  whatever  should  we  do?  " 

"  I  won't  get  lost — not  if  you  girls  continue  to 
shout,"  returned  her  chum. 

She  had  buttoned  her  coat  about  her  and 
pulled  the  skating  cap  she  wore  down  over  her 
ears,  yet  not  too  low  to  muffle  them.  Again  the 
cry  came  wandering  through  the  storm.  Ruth 
started  down  the  bank  of  the  gully;  the  cry  came 
from  the  other  side  of  the  hollow,  she  was  sure — - 
almost  directly  opposite  the  ledge  on  which  they 
had  taken  shelter. 

When  she  plunged  off  the  ledge  she  at  once 


182  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

entered  the  wall  of  driving,  smothering  snow. 
It  almost  took  her  breath,  it  was  so  deep  under 
her  feet  and  shrouded  her  about  so  much  like  a 
mantle.  Had  she  ventured  this  way  when  first 
she  and  her  friends  had  descended  to  the  ledge, 
Ruth  must  have  actually  sunk  out  of  sight  in  the 
soft  drifts. 

But  the  sifting  snow  had  packed  harder  and 
harder  as  the  storm  increased.  After  all,  she 
sank  only  to  her  knees  and  soon  found  that  she 
was  plunging  over  rather  than  through  the  great 
drifts  that  filled  the  gully.  How  broad  this  gully 
was — or  how  deep  when  the  snow  was  out  of  it 
— she  could  not  imagine.  Nor  did  she  give  a 
thought  to  these  things  now. 

Again  she  heard  the  muffled  cry  for  help;  but 
it  sounded  louder.  She  had  made  no  mistake  in 
the  direction  she  had  taken.  The  person  need- 
ing succor  was  directly  in  fronf  of  the  ledge,  but 
could  not  get  over  to  the  fire. 

She  glanced  back  over  her  shoulder.  The 
leaping  flames  she  could  not  see;  but  their  glow 
made  a  round  spot  of  rosy  light  against  the  screen 
of  the  falling  snow.  The  mystery  of  the  sight 
terrified  her  for  a  moment.  Would  she  ever  be 
able  to  fight  her  way  back  to  that  ledge? 

"  Our  Father,  help  me !  "  was  her  unspoken 
prayer,  and  then  she  plunged  on. 

She  heard  the  shrill  cries  of  her  friends  be- 


A   DOUBLE   CAPTIVITY  183 

hind;  ahead  the  lost  one  shouted  out  once 
more. 

"  Here !  here !     This  way !     Help !  " 

"  I'm  coming!  "  responded  Ruth  Fielding  and, 
beaten  as  she  was  by  the  gale  behind,  kept 
Steadily  on. 

The  way  began  to  rise  before  her.  She  was 
ascending  the  other  bank  of  the  gully.  Suddenly 
through  the  snow-wreath  that  surrounded  her  she 
saw  something  waving.  She  sprang  forward 
with  renewed  courage,  crying  again : 

"  I'm  coming!  " 

The  next  moment  she  seized  somebody's  gloved 
hand.  "  Oh,  oh!"  cried  a  shrill,  terrified  voice. 
"Who  are  you?  Help  me!  I  am  freezing.  I 
can't  walk " 

"  Fred  Hatfield! "  gasped  the  amazed  girl. 
"  Is  it  you?     What  is  the  matter?  " 

"Take  me  to  that  house.  I  see  the  light,  but 
I  cannot  reach  it.  Help  me,  for  God's  sake ! " 
cried  the  boy. 

She  could  see  his  white,  pinched  face  as  he  lay 
there  more  than  half  buried  in  the  snow.  His 
eyes  were  feverish  and  wild  and  he  certainly  did 
not  know  Ruth. 

"Help  me  out!  help  me  out!"  he  continued 
to  beg.     "My  leg  is  caught." 

But  it  was  more  weakness  and  exhaustion  than 
aught  else  that  held  the  boy  in  the  drift,  as  Ruth 


184  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

very  soon  found  out  when  she  laid  hold  of  his 
shoulders  and  exerted  her  strength.  In  a  few 
moments,  what  with  her  pulling  and  his 
scrambling,  the  boy  was  out  of  the  drift. 

He  had  clung  to  the  rifle — Tom  Cameron's 
weapon,  of  course — and  into  his  belt  was  stuck  a 
knife  and  a  camp  hatchet. 

"Why,  how  did  you  get  here  in  this  storm?" 
demanded  Ruth,  as  he  lay  panting  at  her  feet. 

"  I  got  lost — from  my — my  camp,"  he  re- 
sponded. "I'm  frozen!  I  can't  feel  my  feet 
at  all " 

"  Come  across  to  the  fire,"  urged  Ruth.  "  We 
girls  are  lost  from  Snow  Camp.  But  we're  all 
right  so  far.     My !  how  the  snow  blows." 

Facing  the  storm  they  could  hardly  make  head- 
way at  all.  Indeed,  the  youth  fell  within  a  few 
yards  and  Ruth  was  obliged  to  drag  him  through 
the  drifts. 

Her  friends  continued  to  shout,  and  occasion- 
ally she  stood  upright,  made  a  megaphone  of 
her  hands,  and  returned  their  hail.  But  her 
strength — all  of  it — finally  had  to  be  given  to 
the  boy.  She  seized  him  by  the  shoulders  and 
fairly  dragged  him  toward  the  other  side  of  the 
gully,  thus  walking  against  the  wind,  backwards. 
Occasionally  she  threw  a  glance  over  her  shoulder 
to  make  sure  that  she  was  making  straight  for 
the  campfire. 


A  DOUBLE  CAPTIVITY  i8b 

The  girls'  voices  drew  nearer  and  finally,  at 
;he  foot  of  the  slope  leading  up  to  the  camp, 
she  was  forced  to  halt  and  drop  her  burden. 

"  Come  down  and  help  me,  Madge ! "  she 
cried.  "  It's  a  boy — a  boy !  He  can't  help  him- 
self.    Come  quick !  " 

The  girls  were  only  a  few  yards  away,  but  so 
fiercely  did  the  wind  blow  that  Ruth  had  to  re- 
peat her  call  for  help  before  Madge  Steele  under- 
stood. Then  the  big  girl  dropped  down  off  the 
ledge  and  plowed  her  way  toward  Ruth  and  her 
burden. 

"The  poor  fellow!  who  is  he?"  gasped 
Madge,  as  together  they  raised  the  strange  boy 
and  started  up  the  sharp  ascent. 

"  Not  Tom  I  Oh !  it's  never  Tom?  "  shrieked 
Helen  at  the  top  of  the  hill. 

"No,  no!"  gasped  Ruth.  "It's — the— boy 
— that — ran  away." 

They  got  him  upon  the  dry  ledge  of  rock  be- 
fore the  fire.  His  cheeks  showed  frostbitten 
spots,  and  Jennie  began  to  rub  them  with  snow. 
"That's  the  way  to  treat  frostbite,"  she  declared. 
"  Take  off  his  boots.  If  his  feet  are  frosted  we'll 
have  to  treat  them  the  same  way." 

Helen  and  Belle  obeyed  Heavy,  who  seemed 
quite  practical  in  this  emergency.  Ruth  had  no 
strength,  or  breath,  for  the  time  being,  but  lay 
beside  the  fire  herself.     Meanwhile  Madge  and 


186  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

Lluella  scrapped  the  red  coals  out  from  the  rock 
and  swept  the  platform  clean  with  green  branches. 
Ruth  and  the  runaway  boy  were  drawn  into  this 
cozy  retreat  and  soon  the  boy  began  to  weep  and 
cry  out  as  the  heat  got  into  his  feet.  It  was 
very  painful  to  have  the  frost  drawn  out  in  this 
manner. 

It  was  now  after  midnight  and  the  storm  still 
raged.  Madge  and  Jennie  floundered  out  for 
more  fuel.  The  hatchet  the  boy  carried  was  of 
great  aid  to  them  in  this  work  and  soon  they  had 
piled  on  the  ledge  sufficient  wood  to  keep  the 
blaze  alive  until  dawn. 

By  this  time  the  strange  youth  had  been  thawed 
out  and  was  dropping  asleep  against  the  warm 
rock.  Helen  and  Belle  agreed  to  stand  the  next 
watch,  and  to  feed  the  fire.  Both  Ruth  and 
Madge  needed  sleep,  the  former  aching  in  every 
muscle  from  her  fight  to  bring  the  rescued  one  in. 

"  We're  doubly  captives  now,"  the  girl  of  the 
Red  Mill  whispered  to  Madge  before  she 
dropped  asleep.  "  If  it  should  stop  snowing  we 
couldn't  try  to  get  back  to  camp  and  leave  this 
chap  here.  And  it  is  certain  sure  that  he  could 
not  travel  himself,  nor  could  we  carry  him." 

"  You  are  right,  Ruth,"  returned  Madge. 
"  This  addition  to  our  party  makes  our  situation 
worse  instead  of  better." 


A  DOUBLE  CAPTIVITY  187 

"  But  maybe  it  will  all  come  out  right  in  the 
end,  dear." 

"Let  us  hope  so." 

"What  a  boy  of  mystery  he  is!" 

"  Yes." 

"  Do  you  think  we'll  ever  get  to  the  bottom 
of  his  trouble?  " 

"  Let  us  hope  so." 

Then  both  girls  turned  over,  to  get  what  sleep 
they  could  under  such  trying  circumstances. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

THE  SEARCH 

It  was  a  most  anxious  night  for  everybody  at 
Snow  Camp.  The  thought  of  the  six  girls  adrift 
in  the  blizzard  kept  most  of  the  household  awake. 
Long  Jerry  Todd,  the  guide,  remained  in  the 
kitchen,  on  the  watch  for  the  first  break  in  the 
storm.  The  others  retired,  all  but  Mr.  Cameron 
and  Tom,  who  sat  before  the  fire  in  the  living 
hall. 

"I  couldn't  sleep  anyway,"  said  Tom,  "with 
Helen  and  Ruth  out  in  the  cold.  It's  dreadful, 
Dad.  I  feel  that  we  boys  are  partly  to  blame, 
too." 

"  How's  that?  "  his  father  asked  him. 

"Why,  the  girls  were  mad  with  hs.  I  let 
Isadore  go  too  far  with  his  joking,"  and  he  told 
Mr.  Cameron  about  the  spoiled  taffy.  M  If  we 
hadn't  done  that  to  them  of  course  they  wouldn't 
have  gone  into  the  woods  without  us         " 

"  But  I  am  afraid  you  lads  would  have  been 
no  more  cautious  than  the  girls,"  interposed  Mr. 
Cameron.  "  This  storm  would  have  taken  you 
by  surprise  just  the  same." 

188 


THE   SEARCH  189 

"  But  we  coufd  have  been  with  them  and  helped 
them." 

11 1  have  great  faith  in  that  little  Fielding  girl's 
good  sense — and  Madge  Steele  is  to  be  trusted," 
said  his  father.  "  Don't  blame  yourself,  boy. 
It  was  something  entirely  unforeseen." 

Several  times  during  the  night  Mr.  Cameron 
tried  to  communicate  with  the  neighbors  over  the 
telephone;  but  some  disaster  had  overtaken  the 
line  and  it  probably  could  not  be  repaired  until 
after  the  storm. 

About  five  o'clock  Long  Jerry  came  into  the 
room.  He  had  been  out  into  the  storm,  for  he 
was  covered  with  snow. 

"How  does  it  look?"  asked  Mr.  Cameron, 
earnestly.     * 

"  She's  going  to  break  with  sun-up,"  prophesied 
the  woodsman.  "  I've  been  feeding  the  cattle 
and  I've  got  the  other  men  up.  If  it  breaks  at 
all,  we  three'll  start  for  the  neighbors  and  rouse 
a  gang  to  help  beat  the  woods." 

"  But  hadn't  we  better  try  to  find  the  girls  at 
once,  Jerry?"  queried  Tom. 

11  We'll  need  a  large  party,  Master  Tom,"  said 
the  guide.  "  We  must  cover  a  deal  of  ground, 
and  the  more  men  we  have  who  are  us-ed  to  the 
trail,  the  better.  If  it  stops  snowing  we  can  get 
around  to  the  neighbors  on  snowshoes  easier  than 
Sany  other  way.     The  drifts  are  packed  hard.     I 


190  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

had  to  tunnel  out  of  the  kitchen  door.  The  snow 
has  banked  up  to  the  second  story  gallery." 

"  They'll  be  buried  yards  under  this  snow," 
groaned  Tom. 

"  Keep  up  your  courage,"  said  Long  Jerry, 
cheerfully.  "  If  them  gals  was  sharp  at  all  they'd 
find  some  shelter  and  make  a  fire." 

"  If  they  had  matches,"  said  Mr.  Cameron, 
doubtfully. 

"  Ruth  had  matches,  I  know,"  said  Tom. 

"  Oh,  we'll  find  them  safe  and  sound,"  declared 
the  guide. 

One  of  Long  Jerry's  prophecies  was  fulfilled 
within  the  hour.  The  storm  broke.  Tom  had 
aroused  his  friends  and  the  three  boys  had  en- 
larged the  tunnel  through  the  snow  from  the 
back  porch  into  the  yard,  and  were  shoveling  a 
passageway  to  the  stables.  The  last  flakes  of 
the  blizzard  fluttered  down  upon  them,  and  the 
tail  of  the  gale  blew  the  clouds  to  tatters  and 
revealed  the  almost  black  sky  with  the  stars  spark- 
ling like  points  of  living  fire. 

"  Hurrah!"  cried  Bob  Steele.     "It's  over!" 

The  guide  and  the  two  other  men  were  already 
getting  on  their  snowshoes,  having  eaten  hur- 
riedly by  the  kitchen  fire.  They  started  out  at 
once  to  rouse  the  neighbors.  By  sunrise  the  sky 
was  entirely  clear  and  the  visitors  to  the  back- 
woods could  climb  to  the  second  floor  gallery  of 


THE   SEARCH  I91 

the  lodge  and  look  out  over  the  great  drifts.  In 
places  the  snow  was  heaped  fifteen  feet  high;  but 
the  men  shuffled  off  over  these  drifts  and  back 
again  as  easily  as  they  would  have  walked  on 
six  inches  of  snow. 

They  brought  with  them  six  other  men,  who  all 
sat  down  to  breakfast  in  the  big  kitchen,  while 
Mr.  Cameron  and  the  boys  and  Mrs.  Murchiston 
finished  their  meal  in  the  dining-room.  To  the 
surprise  of  the  visitors  to  the  camp,  one  of  the 
men  whom  Long  Jerry  had  brought  in  to  help  find 
the  girls  was  the  Rattlesnake  Man,  as  he  was 
called. 

"  We  found  him  poking  about  the  woods  by 
himself,  sir,"  said  Long  Jerry,  privately,  to  Mr. 
Cameron.  "  He  says  there's  been  a  boy  staying 
with  him  for  a  while  back,  and  that  he  started 
out  hunting  just  before  the  storm.  The  old  her- 
mit was  looking  for  him.  By  what  he  says,  I 
believe  it's  the  same  boy  you  folks  was  bringing 
up  here — the  one  that  claims  to  be  Fred  Hat- 
field." 

"That  poor  fellow  may  have  lost  himself  in 
the  blizzard,  too,  eh?"  returned  the  merchant. 
"  Let  us  hope  we  will  find  them  all  safely." 

In  fifteen  minutes  the  whole  party  started  from 
the  lodge  on  snowshoes,  the  boys  dragging  their 
toboggans  and  the  men  carrying  food  and  hot 
coffee  in  vacuum  bottles.     They  separated  into 


192  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

four  parties;  the  three  boys  and  Jerry  Todd  kept 
together.  Jerry  believed  that  the  girls  would 
have  drifted  some  with  the  storm  and  therefore 
he  struck  off  due  east  from  the  house. 

In  an  hour  they  came  back  to  the  bank  of  the 
stream  near  where  Ruth  and  Reno  had  their  ad- 
venture with  the  panther. 

"  If  old  Reno  had  been  well  enough  to  come 
with  us,  he  would  have  scented  them  in  a  hurry/' 
declared  Tom.  "See  the  creek!  it's  completely 
smothered  in  snow." 

They  followed  the  course  of  the  stream  for 
some  distance  and  found  the  banks  growing  more 
steep.  Suddenly  Jerry  began  to  sniff  the  keen 
air,  and  in  a  moment  he  cried: 

"  There's  a  fire  near,  boys.  Somebody  is  burn- 
ing pine  boughs — and  there  isn't  any  house  near, 
that  I  can  swear  to !  " 

They  hurried  on.  Inside  of  half  a  mile  Isa- 
dore  descried  a  column  of  blue  smoke  ahead. 
They  began  to  shout  at  once,  and  it  was  not  long 
before  answering  cries  delighted  them. 

"  That's  Madge  yelling,"  declared  Bob.  "  I'd 
know  her  warwhoop  anywhere." 

Tom  had  set  out  as  fast  as  he  could  travel,  the 
toboggan  jumping  after  him  over  the  drifts. 
Even  Busy  Izzy  grew  excited,  and  yelled  like  a 
good  fellow  as  he  joined  in  the  chase.  They  all 
ran  down  the  bed  of  the  stream  and  reached  a 


THE   SEARCH 


193 


deep  cut  where  the  banks  were  very  high  on 
either  hand. 

Up  the  white  slope  of  the  left  hand  bank  was 
a  small  plateau  on  which  the  fire  was  burning. 
Some  sort  of  a  camp  had  been  established,  sur- 
rounded by  an  embankment  of  tramped  snow. 
Over  this  fortress  the  heads  of  all  six  of  the  girls 
became  visible,  all  crying  out  to  their  rescuers  in 
such  a  medley  of  exclamations  that  no  one  was 
understandable. 

"  Helen !  Ruth ! "  cried  Tom.  "  Are  you  all 
right?" 

"  We're  right  as  right  can  be,  Tommy,"  re- 
turned his  sister,  gaily. 

"  We're  not !  "  squealed  Jennie  Stone.  "  We're 
almost  starved  to  death.  If  you  haven't  brought 
anything  for  us  to  eat,  don't  dare  come  up  here, 
for  we've  turned  cannibals  and  we're  just  about 
to  cast  lots  to  see  who  should  first  be  sacrificed  to 
the  general  good!  " 

But  there  was  more  than  laughter  to  season 
this  rescue.  Some  tears  of  relief  were  shed,  and 
even  Isadore  Phelps  showed  some  shame-faced 
joy  that  the  catastrophe  had  resulted  in  no  worse 
hardships  for  the  girls.     He  said  to  Heavy: 

"  I'm  sorry  I  spoiled  that  old  taffy.  If  you'd 
eaten  your  full  share  of  that  the  other  day,  I  ex- 
pect you  wouldn't  have  suffered  so  from  hunger." 

The  only  person  who  was  seriously  troubled 


I94  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

by  the  adventure  was  the  strange  boy.  He  had 
suffered  severely  in  the  storm  and  now  he  could 
scarcely  move  for  pains  in  his  back  and  legs. 
Otherwise  it  is  doubtful  if  he  would  not  have 
run  when  he  heard  Long  Jerry's  voice  among  the 
rescuers. 

"  Great  turtle  soup!  "  roared  the  guide,  when 
he  beheld  the  shrinking,  cowering  boy.  "  How 
did  you  get  here?  Do  you  mean  to  say  you  are 
alive,  Fred  Hatfield?  Why,  they  buried 
you " 

"No,  they  didn't!"  snarled  the  boy.  "They 
only  thought  they  did." 

"  And  you've  let  'em  think  all  this  time  that 
you  were  shot — and  poor  'Lias  in  jail?  Well! 
you  always  was  a  mean  little  scamp,  Fred  Hat- 
field!" 

But  Ruth  would  not  let  the  guide  scold  the 
boy  any  more.  "  He's  very  sick,  Mr.  Todd," 
she  said.  "  He'll  have  to  be  carried  to  the  lodge. 
I  believe  it  is  rheumatism,  and  he  ought  to  have 
a  doctor  at  once." 

"Lucky  he  is  down  and  out,  then,"  muttered 
the  guide,  "  or  I'd  be  tempted  to  lay  him  across 
my  knee  and  spank  him  right  here  and  now !  " 

The  girls  were  very  thankful  indeed  for  the  hot 
drink  and  the  food  that  had  been  brought. 
Jerry  signaled  with  his  rifle  and  brought  the 
whole  party  to  the  spot  within  the  hour,  includ- 


THE   SEARCH 


195 


ing  the  Rattlesnake  Man.  But  when  the  old 
hermit  saw  that  the  boy  was  found  he  would 
stop  no  longer. 

"  Let  his  folks  look  after  him.  I  gave  him 
shelter;  but  he's  a  bad  boy,  I  reckon.  And  he 
doesn't  like  my  children.  I  don't  want  anybody 
about  my  place  that  doesn't  like  my  children. 
Now,  that  little  girl,"  he  added,  pointing  to  Ruth, 
"she  wasn't  afraid  of  them;  was  you?" 

"  Not  much,"  returned  Ruth,  bravely.  "  And 
I'm  coming  to  see  you  again,  sir,  if  I  can." 

"  You  may  come  at  any  time,  and  welcome," 
answered  the  Rattlesnake  Man,  with  a  low  bow. 
"  Maybe  you  would  like  to  learn  how  to  handle 
my  pets,"  he  added,  with  a  queer  grin. 

"What,  the  snakes!"  screamed  Helen. 

"No,  I  don't  think  I'd  care  to  do  that,"  re- 
plied Ruth. 

"  They  would  not  hurt  you — they  soon  learn 
to  know  their  friends — and  they  get  to  be  as 
friendly  as  kittens,"  returned  the  hermit.  "  I 
have  a  name  for  each  one  of  them,"  he  went  on, 
somewhat  proudly. 

"  Maybe  I'll — I'll  look  at  them— but  I  won't 
want  to  touch  them,"  answered  Ruth.  A  few 
minutes  later  the  strange  Rattlesnake  Man  took 
his  departure. 

Fred  Hatfield  and  the  girls  were  all  packed 
upon  the  sleds  and  drawn  over  the  snow  to  the 


196  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW  CAMP 

camp,  where  the  rescued  and  rescuers  arrived  in 
safety  before  noon.  But  the  girls  had  been 
through  such  an  experience,  and  were  so  ex- 
hausted, that  as  soon  as  dinner  was  over  they  were 
commanded  to  go  to  bed,  while  one  of  the  men 
started  to  town  for  a  doctor  to  attend  young 
Hatfield. 

"  And  be  sure  and  take  this  letter  to  the  sher- 
iff," said  Mr.  Cameron.  "  This  foolish  boy's 
brother  must  be  released  from  jail  at  once.  And 
if  his  folks  want  him,  they  can  come  here  to  Snow 
Camp  and  take  him  home,"  added  the  merchant, 
in  some  disgust.  "  I  must  say  that  it  seems  as 
though  pity  would  be  wasted  on  Fred  Hatfield." 


CHAPTER   XXV 

CERTAIN  EXPLANATIONS 

BUT  the  boy  was  more  seriously  ill  than  any 
of  them  suspected  at  the  time.  Before  night, 
when  the  doctor  arrived  (walking  over  on  snow- 
shoes  with  the  guide)  Fred  was  in  a  high  fever 
and  was  rambling  in  his  speech.  None  of  the 
girls  was  seriously  injured  by  the  adventure  in 
the  snow;  but  the  doctor  shook  his  head  over 
Hatfield. 

Mrs.  Murchiston  gave  the  youth  good  atten- 
tion, however,  and  the  doctor  promised  to  come 
again  as  soon  as  a  horse  could  get  through  the 
roads.  Two  days  passed  before  anybody  got 
to  Snow  Camp  saving  on  snowshoes.  The  gov- 
erness was  so  kind  to  the  sick  boy  that  he  broke 
down  and  confessed  all  his  wretched  story  to  her. 

His  home  life  had  not  been  very  happy  since 
his  father's  death.  His  brother  'Lias,  and  the 
other  big  boys,  were  hard-working  woodsmen 
and  thought  Fred  ought  to  work  hard,  too,  m  the 
woods  and  on  their  poor  little  farm.     He  kad 

197 


198  RUTH  FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

finally  had  a  fierce  quarrel  with  'Lias  and  the 
older  boy  had  thrashed  him. 

"  I  only  meant  to  scare  him,"  Fred  confessed, 
"  when  he  shot  at  me  and  thought  it  was  a  deer. 
The  bullet  whistled  right  by  my  head.  When  I 
jumped  I  dislodged  a  stone  in  the  bank,  and 
that  rolled  down  the  hill  and  splashed  into  Roll- 
ing River.       I  hid. 

"  I  saw  'Lias  was  frightened,  and  I  thought  it 
served  him  right — shooting  so  carelessly.  Lots 
of  folks  are  shot  for  deer  up  here  in  the  hunting 
season,  and  'Lias  is  real  careless  with  a  gun.  So 
I  stayed  hid.  Then  I  heard  two  men  talking  at 
night  and  they  said  they  guessed  marm  would  be 
glad  to  get  rid  of  me — I  was  no  good. 

"  So  I  got  a  ride  off  on  the  railroad,  and  I 
wasn't  going  back.  I  didn't  know  'Lias  had  been 
arrested  until  Mr.  Cameron  brought  me  back 
up  this  way  and  I  heard  about  it  from  a  logger 
that  didn't  know  me.  He  said  my  body  had  been 
found.  Of  course,  it  wasn't  me.  Somebody 
else  was  drowned  in  Rolling  River.  There's 
been  a  little  French  Canadian  feller  missing  since 
last  fall  and  he  was  supposed  to  have  been 
drowned.  It  was  his  body  they  found,  I  reckon. 
The  man  told  me  the  body  was  so  broken  and 
disfigured  that  nobody  could  recognize  the  fea- 
tures— and  the  clothing  was  torn  all  off  it. 

"  I  don't  know  what  marm  and  the  boys  will 


CERTAIN   EXPLANATIONS  199 

do  to  me  if  they  find  me,"  wailed  Hatfield,  who 
seemed  to  be  more  afraid  of  the  rough  usage  of 
his  big  half-brothers  than  anything  else. 

But  the  first  sled  to  get  through  to  Snow 
Camp  brought,  besides  the  doctor,  the  boy's 
mother  and  'Lias  Hatfield  himself.  The  back- 
woods woman  showed  considerable  tenderness 
when  she  met  her  lost  boy,  and  the  young  fel- 
low who  had  suffered  in  jail  for  some  weeks 
held  no  anger  against  his  brother  because  of  it. 

"Why,  Mr.  Cam'ron,"  he  said  to  the  mer- 
chant, "  I  reckon  it  sarved  me  out  right.  I  was 
purty  ha'sh  with  the  boy.  He  ain't  naught  but 
a  weakling,  after  all.  Marm,  she  does  her  best 
by  us  all,  and  we  stick  to  her;  but  if  Fred  ain't 
fitten  to  work  in  the  woods,  or  on  the  farm,  we'll 
find  him  something  to  do  in  town — if  he  likes  it 
better.     I  don't  hold  no  grudge." 

Two  days  later  the  boy  was  well  enough  to 
move,  and  they  all  went  away  from  Snow  Camp; 
but  Mr.  Cameron  had  agreed,  before  they  went, 
to  give  Fred  Hatfield  a  chance  in  his  store  in  the 
city,  if  they  would  send  him  down  there  in  the 
spring. 

"  He's  not  fit  for  the  rough  life  up  here,"  he 
told  Tom  and  Helen  and  Ruth,  when  they  talked 
it  over.  "  He's  not  an  attractive  boy,  either. 
But  he  needs  a  chance,  and  I  will  give  him  one. 
If  we  only  helped  those  people  in  the  world  who 


20O  RUTH   FIELDING   AT    SNOW   CAMP 

really  deserved  helping,  we  wouldn't  boost  many 
folks." 

Meanwhile  the  girls  had  all  recovered  from 
their  adventure  in  the  blizzard,  and  the  entire 
party  of  young  folk  found  plenty  of  amusement 
in  the  snow-bound  camp.  In  one  monstrous  heap 
in  the  yard  the  boys  excavated  a  good-sized  cav- 
ern— big  enough  so  that  all  the  girls  as  well  as  the 
boys  could  enter  it  at  once ;  and  they  lit  it  up  at 
night  with  candles  and  held  a  "  party  "  there,  at 
which  plenty  of  walnut  taffy  was  served — without 
shells  in  it! 

"This  is  heaping  coals  of  fire  on  your  head, 
young  man,"  said  Madge,  tartly,  as  she  passed 
the  pan  to  Busy  Izzy. 

"  All  right,"  he  returned,  with  a  grin.  "  Keep 
on  heaping.     I  can  stand  it." 

"  If  you  girls  had  been  right  smart,"  drawled 
Bob  Steele,  "  when  you  were  lost  the  other  day, 
you'd  have  scooped  you  out  a  hole  like  this  in  a 
snowbank  and  hived  up  as  snug  as  a  bug  in  a 
rug  till  the  storm  was  over." 

"  Oh,  yes !  we  all  know  lots  of  things  to  do 
when  we  are  lost  again,"  returned  Helen.  "  But 
I  hope  that  our  next  vacation  won't  have  any 
such  unpleasant  experience  in  store  for  us." 

11  I'm  with  you  in  that  wish,"  cried  Belle  Ting- 
ley. 

"Well,  now,  you've  all  promised  to  go  wkh 


CERTAIN   EXPLANATIONS  20i 

mc  to  our  cottage  at  Lighthouse  Point  for  two 
weeks  next  summer,"  cried  Heavy.  "  I  guaran- 
tee you  won't  be  lost  in  the  snow  down  there." 

"  Not  at  that  time  of  year,  that's  sure," 
laughed  Ruth.  "  But  we  don't  know  yet,  Jennie, 
that  we  can  go  with  you." 

However,  it  is  safe  to  state  here  that  Ruth,  at 
least,  was  able  to  accept  the  stout  girl's  invita- 
tion, for  we  shall  meet  her  next  in  a  story  en- 
titled: "  Ruth  Fielding  at  Lighthouse  Point;  Or, 
Nita,  the  Girl  Castaway." 

There  was  plenty  of  fun  around  Snow  Camp 
for  the  remainder  of  the  ten  days  they  spent 
there,  and  when  the  time  came  to  go  back  to 
civilization  both  girls  and  boys  assured  good  Mr. 
Cameron  that  they  had  had  a  most  delightful 
time.  They  traveled  as  far  as  Cheslow  together, 
where  Heavy  and  Belle  and  Lluella  went  to  their 
homes  for  a  day  or  two,  to  finish  out  the  tag- 
end  of  the  vacation,  while  the  Steeles  and  Isadore 
went  home  with  the  Camerons,  and  Ruth  re- 
turned to  the  Red  Mill. 

And  how  glad  Aunt  Alvirah  was  to  see  Ruth! 
Uncle  Jabez  didn't  display  his  feelings  so  openly; 
but  Ruth  had  learned  how  to  take  the  miller,  and 
how  to  understand  him.  She  helped  him  with 
his  accounts,  made  out  his  bills  for  the  year,  and 
otherwise  made  herself  of  use  to  him. 

"  You  just  wait,  Uncle  Jabez,"  she  told  him, 


202  RUTH   FIELDING   AT    SNOW   CAMP 

earnestly.  "  I'm  going  to  make  your  investment 
in  my  schooling  at  Briarwood  pay  you  the  big- 
gest dividend  of  anything  you  ever  speculated 
in — you  see."  # 

"  I'm  sure  I  hope  so,  Niece  Ruth,"  he  grum- 
bled. "  I  don't  much  expect  it,  though.  They 
teach  you  too  many  folderols  up  there.  What's 
this  now?"  he  asked,  pointing  his  stubbed  fore- 
finger to  the  little  gold  and  black  enamel  pin  she 
wore  on  her  blouse. 

" '  S.  B.'  " 

"  Is  them  the  letters?  "  • 

"  Yes,  sir.  My  society  emblem.  We're  the 
Sweetbriars,  of  Briarwood  Hall.  And  you  wait! 
we're  going  to  be  the  most  popular  club  in  the 
school  before  long.  We've  had  Mrs.  Telling- 
ham,  the  Preceptress,  at  one  of  our  meetings." 

"What  good  is  that?"  he  demanded,  shaking 
his  grizzled  head. 

11  Fraternity — fellowship — helpfulness  —  hope 
— oh!  it  stands  for  lots  of  things.  And  then, 
Uncle  Jabez,  I  am  learning  to  sing  and  play. 
Maybe  before  long  I  can  open  the  old  cottage 
organ  you've  got  stowed  away  in  the  parlor  and 
play  for  you." 

"  That  won't  lower  the  price  of  wheat,  or 
raise  the  price  of  flour,"  he  grumbled. 

"  How  do  you  know  it  won't,  until  we've  tried 
it?"  she  answered  him,  gaily. 


CERTAIN    EXPLANATIONS 


203 


And  so  she  made  the  old  mill,  and  the  farm- 
house adjoining,  a  much  brighter,  gayer,  pleas- 
anter  place  while  she  was  in  it.  Her  cheerful- 
ness and  sweetness  were  contagious.  Aunt  Al- 
virah  complained  less  frequently  of  her  back  and 
bones  when  Ruth  was  about,  and  in  spite  of  him- 
self, the  old  miller's  step  grew  lighter. 

"Ah,  Jabez,"  Aunt  Alvirah  said,  as  they 
watched  Ruth  get  into  the  Cameron  automobile 
to  be  whisked  away  to  the  station,  and  so  to 
Briarwood  for  her  second  half,  "  that's  where 
our  endurin'  comfort  an'  hope  is  centered  for 
our  old  age.     We've  only  got  Ruthie." 

"  She's  a  mighty  expensive  piece  of  property," 
snarled  the  old  man. 

"  Ye  don't  mean  it,  Jabez,  ye  don't  mean  it," 
she  returned,  softly.  "  You're  thawin'  out — and 
Ruth  Fielding  is  the  sun  that  warms  up  your  cold 
old  heart!" 

But  this  last  was  said  so  low  that  Jabez  Potter 
did  not  hear  it  as  he  stumped  away  toward  the 
Red  Mill. 

In  the  automobile  the  young  folks  were  having 
a  gay  time.  Helen  was  with  Ruth,  and  Tom 
was  on  the  front  seat. 

"  Say,  we  sure  did  have  some  excitement  in 
Snow  Camp  as  well  as  fun,"  came  from  Tom. 

"  And  that  catamount !  "  gasped  Helen. 

"  And  Ruth's  shot!  "  broke  in  her  twin  brother. 


204  RUTH   FIELDING  AT   SNOW   CAMP 

"  Ruth,  you  ought  to  try  for  a  marksmanship 
badge!" 

"And  wasn't  it  fine  how  it  came  out  about 
Fred,"  said  Ruth,  h^r  face  beaming  with  satis- 
faction. "  I  am  so  glad  to  know  he  is  no  longer 
a  homeless  wanderer!" 

"All  due  to  you,"  said  Tom.  "Ruth,  you're 
a  wonder!  "  he  added,  admiringly. 

"  Oh,  Tom !  "  she  answered.  Nevertheless, 
she  looked  much  pleased. 

And  here  let  us  say  good-bye. 


THE   END 


THE  RUBY  AND  RUTHY  SERIES 


By    MINNIE  E.   PAULL 


P 
12mo.    Cloth.    Illustrated.    Price  per  volume,  80  cents,  postpaid. 


teSKK^         1 

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Ruby 

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Four  bright  and  entertaining  stories  told 
in  Mrs.  Paull's  happiest  manner  are  among 
the  best  stories  ever  written  for  young  girls, 
and  cannot  fail  to  interest  any  between  the 
ages  of  eight  and  fifteen  years. 


RUBY  AND  RUTHY 

Ruby  and  Ruthie  were  not  old  enough  to 
go  to  school,  but  they  certainly  were  lively 
enough  to  have  many  exciting  adventures, 
that  taught  many  useful  lessons  needed  to 
be  learned  by  little  girls. 


RUBY'S  UPS  AND  DOWNS 

There  were  troubles  enough  for  a  dozen  grown-ups,  but  Ruby 
got  ahead  of  them  all,  and,  in  spite  of  them,  became  a  favorite 
in  the  lively  times  at  school. 


RUBY  AT  SCHOOL 

Ruby  had  many  surprises  when  she  went  to  the  impossible  place 
she  heard  called  a  boarding  school,  but  every  experience  helped 
to  make  her  a  stronger-minded  girl. 


RUBY'S    VACATION 

This  volume  shows  how  a  little  girl  improves  by  having  varie-  \ 
ties  of  experience  both  happy  and  unhappy,  provided  she  thinks,' 
and  is  able  to  use  her  good  sense.    Ruby  lives  and  learns. 


Send  For  Our  Free  Illustrated  Catalogue. 


CUPPLES  &  LEON  COMPANY,  Publishers         New  YorW 


THE    BASEBALL   JOE    SERIES 

BY    LESTER    CHADW1CK 

i2tno.    Illustrated.    Price  per  volume,       $1.00  postpaid. 

BASEBALL  JOE  OF  THE  SILVER  STARS 

or  The  Rivals  of  Riverside 
Joe  is  an  everyday  country  boy  who  loves 
to  play  baseball  and  particularly  to  pitch. 

BASEBALL  JOE    ON   THE  SCHOOL  NINE 

or  Pitching  for  the  Blue  Banner 
Joe's  great  ambition  was  to  go  to  boarding 
school  and  play  on  the  school  team. 

BASEBALL  JOE  AT  YALE 

or  Pitching  for  the  College  Championship 

Joe  goes  to  Yale  University.    In  his  second  year  he  becomes  a 
'varsity  pitcher  and  pitches  in  several  big  games. 

BASEBALL  JOE  IN  THE  CENTRAL  LEAGUE 

or  Making  Good  as  a  Professional  Pitcher 

In  this  volume   the  scene  of  action  is  shifted  from  Yale 
college  to  a  baseball  league  of  our  central  states. 

BASEBALL  JOE  IN  THE  BIG  LEAGUE 

or  A  Young  Pitcher's  Hardest  Struggles 
From  the  Central  League  Joe  is  drafted  into  the  St.  Louis] 
Nationals.    A  corking  baseball  story  all  fans  will  enjoy. 

BASEBALL  JOE  ON  THE  GIANTS 

or  Making  Good  as  a  Twirler  in  the  Metropolis 

.    How  Joe  was  traded  to  the  Giants  and  became  their  mainstay 
in  the  box  makes  an  interesting  baseball  story. 

BASEBALL  JOE  IN  THE  WORLD  SERIES 

or  Pitching  for   the   Championship 

The  rivalry  was  of  course  of  the  keenest,  and  what  Joe  did  to 
win  the  series  is  told  in  a  manner  to  thrill  the  most  jaded  reader. 

BASEBALL  JOE  AROUND  THE  WORLD 

or  Pitching  on  a  Grand  Tour 

The  Giants  and  the  All-Americans  tour  the  world,  playing  in 
'many  foreign  countries. 

Send  For  Our  Free  Illustrated  Catalogue. 


CUPPLES  &  LEON  COMPANY,  Publishers 


New  York 


Alive,  Patriotic,  elevating 

BANNER  BOY  SCOUTS  SERIES 

By  GEORGE  A.  WARREN 

Author  of  the  "Revolutionary  Series" 
12mo.      Illustrated.  Price  per  volume,  $1.00  Met. 


The  Boy  Scouts  movement  has  swept 
over  our  country  like  wildfire,  and  is  en- 
dorsed by  our  greatest  men  and  leading 
educators.  No  author  is  better  qualified  to 
write  such  a  series  as  this  than  Professor 
Warren,  who  has  wrtched  the  movement 
closely  since  its  inception  in  England  some 
years  ago. 


The  Banner  Boy  scouts 


or  The  Struggle  for  Leadership 
This  initial  volume  tells  how  the  news  of  the  scout  move- 
ment reached  the  boys  and  how  they  determined  to  act  on  it. 
They  organized  the  Fox  Patrol,  and  some  rivals  organized  an- 
other patrol.  More  patrols  were  formed  in  neighboring  towns 
and  a  prize  was  put  up  for  the  patrol  scoring  the  most  points 
in  a  many-sided  contest. 

The  Banner  Boy  Scouts  on  a  Tour 

or  The  Mystery  of  Rattlesnake  Mountain 
This  story  begins  with   a   mystery  that   is  most  unusual. 
There  is  a  good  deal  of  fun  and  adventure,  camping,  fishing, 
and  swimming,  and  the  young  heroes  more  than  once  prove 
their  worth. 

The  Banner  Boy  Scouts  Afloat 

or  The  Secret  of  Cedar  Island 

Here  is  another  tale  of  life  in  the  open,  of  jolly  times  on 
river  and  lake  and  around  the  camp  fire,  told  by  one  who  has 
camped  out  for  many  years. 

The  Banner  Boy  Scouts  Snowbound  (New) 

or  A  1  our  on  Skates  and  Iceboats 

The  boys  take  a  trip  into  the  mountains,  where  they  are 
caught  in  a  big  snowstorm  and  are  snowbound.  A  series  of 
stirring  adventures  which  will  hold  the  interest  of  every 
reader. 

Send  For  Our  Free  Illustrated  Catalogue 


UPPLES  &  LEON  CO.,  Publishers, 


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THE   BOYS'  OUTING   LIBRARY 

i2mo.    Cloth.    Illustrated.    Jacket  in  full  color. 
Price,  per  volume,  80  cents,  postpaid. 


THE  SADDLE  BOYS  SERIES 


By  CAPT.  JAMES  CARSON 

The  Saddle  Boys  of  the  Rockies 
The  Saddle  Boys  in  the  Grand  Canyom 
The  Saddle  Boys  on  the  Plains 
The  Saddle  Boys  at  Circle  Ranch 
The  Saddle  Boys  on  Mexican  Trails 

THE  DAVE  DASHAWAY  SERIES 


By    ROY    ROCKWOOD 


Dave  Dashaway  the  Young  Aviator 
Dave  Dashaway  and  His  Hydroplane 
Dave  Dashaway  and  His  Giant  Airship 
Dave  Dashaway  Around  the  World 
Dave  Dashaway:  Air  Champion 

THE  SPEEDWELL  BOYS  SERIES 


By    ROY    ROCKWOOD 


The  Speedwell  Boys  on  Motorcycles 

The  Speedwell  Boys  and  Their  Racing  Auto 

The  Speedwell  Boys  and  Their  Power  Launch 

The  Speedwell  Boys  in  a  Submarine 

The  Speedwell  Boys  and  Their  Ice  Racer 

THE  TOM  FAIRFIELD  SERIES 


By  ALLEN  CHAPMAN 


Tom  Fairfield's  School  Days      Tom  Fairfield  in  Camp 
Tom  Fairfield  at  Sea  |  Tom  Fairfield's  Pluck  and  Luck 

Tom  Fairfield's  Hunting  Trip 


THE  FRED  FENTON  ATHLETIC  SERIES 


By  ALLEN  CHAPMAN 


Fred  Fenton  the  Pitcher 
Fred  Fenton  in  the  Line 


Fred  Fenton  on  the  Crew 
Fred  Fenton  on  the  Track 


Fred  Fenton:  Marathon  Runner 
Send  For  Our  Free  Illustrated  Catalogue. 


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The  Speedwell  Boys 
Series 

By  ROY  ROCKWOOD 

Author  of  "The  Dave  Dashaway  Series,"  "Great  Marvel  Series,"  etc. 
12mo.      Illustrated.      Price   per  volume,  .80  cents,    postpaid. 


All  boys  who  love  to  be  on  the  go  will  welcome  the  Speed- 
well  boys.     They  are  clean   cut  and  loyal   lads. 

The  Speedwell  Boys  on  Motor 
Cycles 

or  The  Mystery  of  a  Great  Conflagration 

The  lads  were  poor,  but  they  did  a  rich 
man  a  great  service  and  he  presented  them 
with  their  motor  cycles.  What  a  great  fire 
led  to  is  exceedingly  well  told. 

The  Speedwell  Boys  and  Their 
Racing  Auto 

or  A  Run  for  the  Golden  Cup 

A  tale  of  automobiling  and  of  intense  rivalry  on  the  road. 
There  was  an  endurance  run  and  the  boys  entered  the  contest. 
On  the  run  they  rounded  up  some  men  who  were  wanted  by 
the  law. 

The  Speedwell  Boys  and  Their  Power  Launch 

or  To  the  Reseue  of  the  Castaways 

Here  is  an  unusual  story.  There  was  a  wreck,  and  the  lads, 
in  their  power  launch,  set  out  to  the  rescue.  A  vivid  picture 
of  a  great  storm  adds  to  the  interest  of  the  tale. 

The  Speedwell  Boys  in  a  Submarine 

or  The  Lost  Treasure  of  Rocky  Cove 

An  old  sailor  knows  of  a  treasure  lost  under  water  because 
of  a  cliff  falling  into  the  sea.  The  boys  get  a  chance  to  go 
out  in  a  submarine  and  they  make  a  hunt  for  the  treasure. 

The  Speedwell  Boys  and  Their  Ice  Racer 

or  The  Perils  of  a  Great  Blizzard 

The  boys  had  an  idea  for  a  new  sort  of  iceboat,  to  be  run 
by  combined  wind  and  motor  power.  How  they  built  the  craft, 
and  what  fine  times  they  had  on  board  of  it,  is  well  related. 


CU°PU,ES  &  LEON  CO.,  Publishers, 


NEW  YORK 


The  Tom  Fairfield  Series 

By  ALLEN   CHAPMAN 

Author  of  the  "Fred  Fenton  Athletic  Series,"  "The  Boys  of  Pluck  Series,** 
and  "The  Darewell  Chums   Series." 

12mo.      Illustrated.       Price   per   volume*    80  cents,    postpaid. 


Tom  Fairfield  is  a  typical  American  lad,  full  of  life  and 
energy,  a  boy  who  believes  in  doing  things.  To  know  Tom  is 
to   love  him. 


TOM    FAIRFIELD'S   SCHOOLDAYS 

or  The  Chums  of  Elmwood  Hall 

Tells  of  how  Tom  started  for  school, 
of  the  mystery  surrounding  one  ot  the 
Hali  seniors,  and  of  how  the  hero  went 
to  the  rescue.  The  first  book  in  a  line 
that  is  bound  to  become  decidedly  popular. 

Tom  Fairfield  at  Sea 

or  The  Wreck  of  the  Silver  Star 

Tom's  parents  had  gone  to  Australia  and  then  been  cast 
away  somewhere  in  the  Pacific.  Tom  set  out  to  find  them  and 
was  himself  cast  away.  A  thrilling  picture  of  the  perils  of 
the  deep. 

Tom  Fairfield  in  Camp 

or  The  Secret  of  the  Old  Mill 

The  boys  decided  to  go  camping,  and  located  near  an  old 
mill.  A  wild  man  resided  there  and  he  made  it  decidedly  lively 
for  Tom  and  his  chums.  The  secret  of  the  old  mill  adds  to  the 
interest  of  the  volume. 

TOM  FAIRFIELD'S  PLUCK  AND  LUCK 

or  Working  to  Clear  His  Name 

While  Tom  was  back  at  school  some  of  his  enemies  tried 
to  get  him  into  trouble.  Something  unusual  occurred  and  Tom 
was  suspected  of  a  crime.  How  he  set  to  work  to  clear  his 
name  is  told  in  a  manner  to  interest  all  young  readers. 

Tom  Fairfield's  Hunting  Trip 

or  Lost   in   the    Wilderness 

Tom  was  only  a  schoolboy,  but  he  loved  to  use  a  shotgun 
or  a  rifle.  In  this  volume  we  meet  him  on  a  hunting  trip  full 
of  outdoor  life  and  good  times  around  the  camp-fire. 


CUPPLES  &  LEON  CO.,  Publishers, 


NEW  YORK 


The  Fred  Fenton 
Athletic  Series 

By  ALLEN   CHAPMAN 

Author  of  "The  Tom  Fairfield   Series,"   "The   Boys  of  Pluck   Series"  and 
"The   Darewell   Chums   Series." 

12mo.      Illustrated.       Price   per   volume,  80  cents,    postpaid. 

A  line  of  tales  embracing  school  athletics.     Fred  is  a  true 
type  of  the  American   schoolboy  of  to-day. 


Fred  Fenton  the  Pitcher 

•r  The  Rivals  of  Riverport  School 

When  Fred  came  to  Riverport  none  of 
the  school  lads  knew  him,  but  he  speedily 
proved  his  worth  in  the  baseball  box.  A 
true  picture  of  school  baseball. 

Fred  Fenton  in  the  Line 

or  The  Football  Boys  of  Riverport  School 


When  Fall  came  in  the  thoughts  of  the 

boys  turned    to    football.  Fred   went   in    the  line,  and  again 

proved   his  worth,  making  a   run  that  helped  to  win  a  great 
game. 

Fred  Fenton  on  the  Crew 

or  The  Young  Oarsmen  of  Riverport  School 

In  this  volume  the  scene  is  shifted  to  the  river,  and  Fred 
and  his  chums  show  how  they  can  handle  the  oars.  There  are 
many  other  adventures,  all  dear  to  the  hearts  of  boys* 

Fred  Fenton  on  the  Track 

or  The  Athletes  of  Riverport  School 

Track  athletics  form  a  subject  of  vast  interest  to  many 
boys,  and  here  is  a  tale  telling  of  great  running  races,  high 
jumping,  and  the  like.  Fred  again  proves  himself  a  hero  in 
the   best  sense  of  that  term. 

Fred  Fenton  :  Marathon  Runner 

or  The  Great  Race   at  Riverport  School 

Fred  is  taking  a  post-graduate  course  at  the  school  when 
the  subject  of  Marathon  running  came  up.  A  race  is  arranged, 
and  Fred  shows  both  his  friends  and  his  enemies  what  he  can 
do.     An  athletic  story  of  special  merit. 


CUPPLES  &  LEON  CO.,  Publishers, 


NEW  YORK 


The  Dave  Dashaway 
Series 

By  ROY  ROCKWOOD 

Author  of  tKe  "Speedwell  Boys  Series"  and  the  "Great  Marvel  Series.* 
12mo.      Illustrated.      Price  per  volume.  .80  cents,   postpaid. 

Never  was  there  a  more  clever  young  aviator  than  Dave 
Dashaway.  All  up-to-date  lads  will  surely  wish  to  read 
about  him. 


Dave  Dashaway  the  Young  Aviator 

or  In  the  Clouds  for  Fame  and  Fortune 

This  initial  volume  tells  how  the  hero  ran 
away  from  his  miserly  guardian,  fell  in  with 
a  successful  airman,  and  became  a  young 
aviator  of  note. 


Dave 


His 


Dashaway  and 
Hydroplane 

or  Daring  Adventures  Over  the  Great  Lakes 

Showing  how  Dave  continued  his  career  as  a  birdman  and 
had  many  adventures  over  the  Great  Lakes,  and  how  he 
foiled  the  plans  of  some  Canadian  smugglers. 

Dave  Dashaway  and  His  Giant  Airship 

or  A  Marvellous  Trip  Across  the  Atlantic 

How  the  giant  airship  was  constructed  and  how  the  daring 
young  aviator  and  his  friends  made  the  hazardous  journey 
through  the  clouds  from  the  new  world  to  the  old,  is  told  in  a 
way  to  hold  the  reader  spellbound. 

Dave  Dashaway  Around  the  World 

or  A   Young   Yankee  Aviator  Among  Many  Nations 

An  absorbing  tale  of  a  great  air  flight  around  the  world, 
of  adventures  ;n  Alaska,  Siberia  and  elsewhere.  A  true  to 
life  picture  of  what  may  be  accomplished  in  the  near  future* 

Dave  Dashaway:  Air  Champion 

or  Wizard  Work  in  the  Clouds 

Dave  makes  several  daring  trips,  and  then  enters  a  contest 
far  a  big  prize.    An  aviation  tale  thrilling  in  the  extreme. 


CUPPLES  &  LEON  CO,,  Publishers, 


NEW  YORK 


1 


